Tennis veteran Murray had to say goodbye early at the US Open. Tsitsipas's behavior pissed him off.
Close and yet failed. Tennis veteran Andy Murray had to say goodbye in the first round of the US Open. The Briton co-favorite of the title forced Stefanos Tsitsipas into the fifth set, but after almost five hours he left the field as a loser. Murray was visibly pissed off afterwards.
The reason for this was his opponent. Tsitsipas took a toilet break between the fourth and fifth movements. The audience and Murray waited, but the Greek took a long time. It only reappeared after almost ten minutes. Murray then complained to the referee. “The toilet is right there, what is he doing in there? Never took me so long to go to the bathroom.”
“It has never once taken me that long to go to the toilet, ever!” # andymurraypic.twitter.com / JiJJoUaipL
– Tennis GIFs 🎾🎥 (@tennis_gifs) August 31, 2021
“Simply Disappointing”
Tsitsipas received a penalty for a time violation, which he didn't care about in the end. He decided the decisive sentence for himself and cheered about the victory.
The 23-year-old's long toilet break was also the big topic at the press conference after the game. And Murray confessed that he and his team had expected such delays. “The problem is, you can't stop it from affecting you physically. If you have to wait seven or eight minutes in such a brutal game, you just cool off,” said Murray.
Tsitsipas has repeatedly taken shorter and longer breaks, often before the British serve. “It can't be a coincidence,” says Murray. “At a moment like this, I don't believe him that his foot is causing him any problems.” It was “just disappointing,” the 34-year-old continued, “I really appreciate him, I think he's a brilliant player. But I don't have time for that. And I've lost my respect for him.”
And Tsitsipas himself? He can't understand the excitement about himself. “I don't think I broke any rules,” said the Greek. If something bothered Murray, he should tell him “in private.”
