Andy Murray is dumped out of Miami Open in devastating defeat by Tomas Machac… as Brit battles through major injury scare before deciding set tie-break in marathon

Andy Murray made an agonizing exit from the Miami Open last night, screaming in pain after twisting his left ankle at the end of a grueling battle that saw the 36-year-old suffer tiebreak heartbreak against his Czech conqueror Tomas Machac.

Murray was left face down in distress on Butch Buchholz Court after hurting himself just as he leveled the score at 5-5 in the final set. He looked like a broken man after picking himself up and shaking his head as he staggered to his seat for medical attention.

Before that, the feisty Scot had broken Machac to stop him from handing out victory in a defiant display of determination as only he can.

Although Murray is approaching a summer of retirement, there can be no doubt about his commitment as his career draws to a close. To the crowd’s surprise, he returned to take the match to a decisive tiebreak and there the 23-year-old from the Czech Republic confirmed his 5-7, 7-5, 7-6 victory in three hours and 37 minutes. .

Although Murray left disappointed, those on Butch Buchholz Court knew they had witnessed an excellent performance from the soon-to-retire Briton, one of blistering backhands and sumptuous lobs as he showed some of his best tennis in securing the first set.

Murray faced a rain delay midway through the second set that disrupted his momentum, as well as the movement of wild fans in the stands, leading to an angry altercation with Brazilian referee Carlos Bernardes.

The spectators were largely on Murray’s side, hoping he would extend his stay in Miami – a city he described this week as his “tennis home” because of how often he has used it as a base for his training. With his plan to retire from this summer – possibly after the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris – Murray knew he would face his last competitive match in the Florida metro if he suffered a repeat of his straight sets match last month. loss against Machac in Marseille.

Murray squandered break points in each of Machac’s first three service games but showed no signs of frustration as they remained level at 3-3. Instead, there were clenched fists everywhere as he held his serve while working to pump up the crowd.

At 5-5 Murray had three more chances to break at 0-40. Machac saved them all to cut the score to 40-40 – the third with an ace that took the line – but Murray took the lead at deuce.

Finally, on the ninth time of asking, he broke his young rival with a big backhand and an even bigger celebration ensued as he skipped to his seat before serving out the first set.

Rain interrupted the second set while Murray was serving, making it 2-2. Once those ominous-looking clouds passed, the Scot went back to putting pressure on Machac, but Murray lost focus as he complained about being distracted by wandering spectators in the stands.

Machac still had not secured a single break point, but at 5-4 the pressure was on Murray to serve to stay in the second set. At 15-40 Machac had two chances to level the match.

Despite more complaints about movement, which led to a row with Bernardes, who was accused of failing to control them, Murray saved both set points and had the upper hand at deuce. At 6-5, Machac secured another set point. This time he took it.

Early in the third set, Murray was broken as Machac took a 2-0 lead with a confident backhand winner, leaving the Scot facing an irritating exit amid an epic battle.

At 4-2, Murray had two chances to break back, but Machac saved both. At 5-3 he created three more chances. After hitting two forehand returns into the net, he won the third, with Machac nervously double-faulting to put us back on serve.

However, when Murray made it 5-5, he damaged his left ankle and was left on the ground in pain. Somehow, Murray returned to the court and even sent the match into a decisive tiebreak.

There Murray led 4-2 and then 5-3, but Machac refused to give in. He fought back and eventually won the match, sending the Scot out of this tournament for the last time in his career.