Murray suffers earliest ever Shanghai Masters exit in first-round loss to Safiullin
A
n indignant and annoyed Andy Murray endured his earliest ever exit on the Shanghai Masters in a first-round loss to Roman Safiullin on Wednesday.
On paper, it seemed an ideal match-up with Murray only a place above the Russian within the ATP rankings at 40th on the planet.
But Safiullin, as much as a career-high singles rating within the latter phases of the 2023 season, ensured it was totally one-sided affair as he beat the three-time champion Murray 6-3, 6-2.
The 26-year-old produced a few of his finest tennis to run Murray ragged, his 36-year-old opponent unable to match him over the course of two units.
But Murray, who smashed his racket in frustration at one level, was undone by some poor serving, managing to get barely 50 per cent of his first serves in, and he was rushed all through the match.
In reality, the match was tighter than the scoreline advised, the second set feeling prefer it might have gone both means for a lot of it.
In the top, Safiullin was the much more scientific, changing 5 of break factors whereas Murray managed to make simply certainly one of seven depend.
It will probably be an all-Russian contest within the subsequent spherical with Safiullin because of play Alexander Zverev.