Zhuhai (China) (AFP)

Andy Murray was defeated by Alex de Minaur in the round of 16 at the Zhuhai tournament in China on Thursday, a defeat ending his hopes of winning a singles title since the hip operation he underwent in January 2019.

The former world number 1 lost in 3 sets 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, against the young Australian, currently ranked 31st in the ATP world rankings. De Minaur will play Croatian Borna Coric on Friday in the quarterfinals.

At 32, Andy Murray had won his first individual match in an ATP tournament Tuesday since his heavy hip surgery in January, when he was asked a metal prosthesis. It was the American Tennys Sandgren, beaten in 3 sets, who paid the price.

After a day of rest without training, the Briton, currently 413rd world only, began the match with intensity, but he suffered physically and could not maintain his service at a constant level.

"I do not play tennis top-20, top 30 right now, I'm more between top-70 and top-60," he said after the match.

Winner of the first set, well helped by the faults of his opponent, he then sank gradually, heading inevitably to a defeat.

"Physically, I struggled, I could play one or two points pretty well, and then I tried to conclude the exchanges quickly.The problem is that with fatigue, we lose in lucidity. wrong choice, "he explained.

Murray will participate in the Beijing Open next week, continuing his return to the courts. In an interview with AFP before the beginning of the week, he had admitted that he did not expect to regain his form which allowed him to win 3 major tournaments.

The Scotsman had mentioned in Melbourne in January a likely retirement after Wimbledon 2019 - where he played in doubles and mixed doubles - because of his recalcitrant hip. But the successful installation of a metal prosthesis allowed him to see a return to the competition in singles.

Murray returned to the circuit in June, first in doubles, including a win at the Queen's grass tournament, paired with Spain's Feliciano Lopez. In singles, he made his comeback in August at the Cincinnati Masters 1000, with a loss as soon as he entered.

© 2019 AFP