Battling Murray succumbs to Australian Open defeat

Andy Murray is out of the Australian Open after eventually losing to Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut in a valiant display where he struggled to move.

Former world number one Murray finished his second-round match at 4 am on Friday and, returning to court 39 hours later, was beaten 6-1 6-7 (7-9) 6-3 6-4.

The 35-year-old Scot, who had career-threatening hip surgery in 2019, was the last Briton to fall in the singles.

• Why it has been difficult to revive groundnut pyramids
• Chatham House parade: the ethnocentric dimension

Murray left everything out on the court before succumbing to the man who famously beat him at the 2019 Australian Open in what the three-time Grand Slam champion feared would be the final match of his career.