Andy Murray suffered a first-round exit at the French Open as he fell to an inspired Stan Wawrinka in straight sets on Sunday night.
PARIS --
It was a tennis match more resembling a heavyweight fight as the two exchanged powerful groundstrokes with the odd drop shot breaking things up as the duo defied age to keep a packed crowd enthralled. But it was Wawrinka, 39, who prevailed, booking his spot in the second round. "I think I played my best match of the year. I was playing aggressive, and I'm super happy with the performance."
But the injury healed quicker than expected and he ended up missing six weeks of competition. During that spell, he used that time to weigh up a change of racket. He tested 10 different options that he purchased in Florida and opted to move away from the Head rackets he has used through his career and switched to a Yonex Ezone 100 racket, one offering more power.
Murray held an overall 13-9 record against Wawrinka, but it was the veteran Swiss who started better, breaking Murray's serve in the opening game, converting a third break point. The second set was much the same. As the temperature dipped -- those in the courtside seats wrapping themselves in blankets -- Wawrinka continued dictating the tempo of the match, breaking Murray to go 2-1 up in the second set. Murray battled, looking to break serve while holding his own -- stringing together a brilliant variety of shots to win the seventh -- but he was unable to get a foothold back in the set, with Wawrinka taking the second 6-4.
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