ANDY MURRAY could be tempted to throw his new rackets in the bin after his French Open singles final ended in failure.
Muzza37, chose a different brand of equipment for this farewell performance on French clay, after twenty years of loyalty to the same manufacturer.
6
6
Yet his new weapon of choice was no match Swiss veteran Stan Wawrinkawho triumphed 6-4 6-4 6-2 in the first round at 10:50 PM local time.
Questions will be asked about the wisdom of tinkering with his tools, especially during a major and a month off Wimbledon.
He could provide some answers if he has a deep run in men's doubles with Dan Evans.
Nevertheless, he said goodbye to Court Philippe-Chatrier for the last time in singles, after being dismissed as a hero by the locals.
Of course, that's assuming he follows through with his plan to retire this year.
Seeing this heavyweight couple lashing out late into the cool Parisian night, when they could so easily have been at home with the pipe and slippers, made you wonder.
Why do they do this later in life?
What inspires them to continue and not stop yet?
Let the youngsters battle it out on the track. They have both earned enough money to enjoy a long and happy retirement.
The combined age of these two warriors – who continue to persevere despite everything all injuries, surgeries and metal hips – was a remarkable 76 years.
That represented the second-oldest match of this century at Roland Garros.
It was their 23rd meeting in 19 years, but significantly Wawrinka, 39, had won the previous two that had taken place on this ground.
At the start of the proceedings, the arena was about 50% full and the temperature had dropped to the point where blankets were needed in the snail-eating fancy seats.
Murray, who was that? using a Yonex racket no Head one for the first time, had a difficult opening service game that lasted seven minutes.
And he was undone by the world number 98 on the third break point.
Although still capable of firing aces at 120 miles per hour, Murray was outwitted by the taller man on the court.
Wawrinka was drop-shotting magnificently, firing one-handed backhand winners over the line before claiming the first set after 56 minutes.
In the battle for the three-time Grand Slam champion, Wawrinka struck first in the second set and his break in game three proved crucial.
Tenacious Wawrinka – one of three players to defeat Djokovic, FedererMurray and Nadal at the majors – took a medical timeout at the start of the third set.
6
6
And he also rubbed an ice pack on his left thigh, perhaps a reminder that he's not a young person anymore.
Yet there did not seem to be much physically wrong with the tennis OAP, as he comfortably finished the match in two sets after more than two and a quarter minutes.
Should he reach round two, the British will be number 1 Cameron Norrie – who faces Russian Pavel Kotov on Monday – it would be unwise to underestimate the ageless Wawrinka.
Surrey's Murray could find himself at an ATP Challenger in Surbiton for the grass start next week, but he will be desperate to do better than this in his swan song summer.
After the match, Wawrinka said: “My first words were respect for a great champion.
“I loved watching Andy play and loved fighting him. We've had a lot of arguments over the past fifteen years.
“We're not that young yet, so we did what we could and remembered all these moments.
“I love working for such an audience. I shared a lot of emotions with this audience and they gave me a lot of energy to fight. In my head I'm still a young guy, still a child.
“It was emotional at the end. It was great to play during the night session. This was my best match of the year.
“Andy is a great guy, a great player, such a great fighter. We have a lot of respect for each other.”
Meanwhile, Murray refused to bleat
He said: “I'm disappointed. It was always going to be a tough match.
6
6
“Stan has played fantastic tennis on that court over the years. He gave me few chances. I didn't have high expectations. I would have liked to have done better.
Did the change of racket play a role? I do not think so.
“In recent years I haven't played much clay tennis, I haven't won many matches.
“I don't think it played a big role, but it will also take a bit of time to get used to it. It is different. There are positive aspects to it. We will continue to work on it.
“I told him he had done well to win. We had a chat on the net. We have been playing for a long time and have known each other for a long time.”