Andy Murray had a chance to earn his 500th hard-court win at the 2024 Qatar Open in Doha, but Jakub Mensik beat him in three sets.
Murray finally broke his negative streak in Doha by winning a match, which was his first win in 2024. Not only was that the first win this year, but it was actually the first win he had earned since October of last year.
That was a huge negative streak for Murray, and it was really important for him to end it. Unfortunately, the Brit couldn't make it a winning streak because he was beaten immediately in the next match.
It's a complicated matchup for him because he played a motivated young player who wanted to prove himself. Mensik outlasted Murray, who at times looked quite tired.
That's the reality of the situation because we all know his story, and while it's impressive he's still playing, this isn't any average tennis player. It's a player with a metal hip, which will be a problem against these young and up-and-coming players.
The opening set went to Mensik, but it could have gone to Murray. It was decided in a tie-break where the Brit had a 6-4 lead and an easy volley on the net. He put it into the net and not over the net, and that cost him heavily as he ended up losing that set 6-8 in the tie-break.
The second set was another one where we saw the tie-break, but this time around, Murray was a bit sharper. He won it 7-3, and the match ended up in a decider.
Mensik easily outplayed his opponent in the first half of it, taking a 5-2 lead, but the Brit didn't give up and pulled one break back.
The youngster had another chance at 5-4 but once again got broken by Murray, who wasn't going to give up. He fought his way to the third tie-break of the match but lost it 5-7.
Three brutal tie-breaks that the two had to play and eventually a brutal loss for Murray, who lost 6-7(6), 7-6(3), 6-7(4).