07 February 2024 , 09:39
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A gutted Andy Murray has admitted that his miserable run of form has seen him lose confidence for the first time in his storied career.
The tennis icon has now been beaten in all four of his matches since the start of 2024, losing nine of his last 10 outings stretching back to September. Murray, 36, had been raring to go for his 20th season on the ATP Tour, having gone through injury hell in recent years.
But the Scot is failing to rediscover his form and confessed following Tuesday's 7-5 6-4 defeat to Czech opponent Tomas Machac at the Open 13 in Marseille that he's now suffering from a lack of confidence. "When you can't win, you also lose confidence," Murray said. "I've never experienced that in my career."
Having previously admitted that another injury-hit year could force him to retire, the two-time Wimbledon champion added: "The only way to find solutions to win matches. It can also be played out in training, working on your game, but what happens in training doesn't always translate into a match.
"In 2016, when I finished world number 1, my coach told me that I had maybe won two or three training sets during the whole year. This year, I won almost all of them and I can't win a single match! You have to perform in competition, that's the only thing that counts."
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A fit Murray recently vowed to keep fighting despite his lack of wins, writing on Twitter: "I'm in a terrible moment right now I'll give you that. Most people would quit and give up in my situation right now. But I'm not most people and my mind works differently. I won't quit. I will keep fighting and working to produce the performances I know I'm capable of."
Your turn! Will Andy Murray bounce back? Let us know your prediction in the comments section.
Andy Murray has lost nine of his last 10 matches (Icon Sport)Eventually, though, Murray's retirement is inevitable. Last month, the 36-year-old was asked whether he'd consult his family and coaching team before making a decision. "I've spoken to them about it. I've spoken to my family about it. I've spoken to my team about it," Murray explained.
"Well, yeah, they're very aware of how I feel about things, where I would like to finish playing when that would be. I haven't made any definite decisions on that. Yeah, it's obviously something that I need to think about and see exactly when that is. I have spoken to my team about it. I've spoken to my family about it multiple times. It's not like it hasn't been something that's been on my mind."