US Open: 'I lost today in straight sets, so that's disappointing. But the year has been a good one': Andy Murray keeps quarter-final defeat in perspective

(Reuters)

Andy Murray did not hide his disappointment at going out of the US Open, but the Scot tried to keep his quarter-final defeat by Stanislas Wawrinka in perspective.

“I don't know if I'm meant to win every Grand Slam I play or be in the final,” Murray said after his 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 loss. “It's just very, very difficult just now. With the guys around us, it's very challenging. I have played my best tennis in the Slams the last two or three years.

“I lost today in straight sets, so that's disappointing. I would have liked to have gone further, but I can't complain. If someone told me before the US Open last year that I would have been here as defending champion having won Wimbledon and Olympic gold, I would have taken that 100 per cent. I'm disappointed, but the year as a whole has been a good one.”

He added: “I got to the quarter-finals of a Slam, which isn't easy. I would have liked to have played a little bit better, but I've had a good run the last couple of years.”

Murray said he was disappointed at having played “a bad match” but praised Wawrinka. “He played great,” Murray said. “He hit big shots. He passed extremely well. He hit a lot of lines on big points. He served well. That was it. He played a great match.”

The Scot said the turning point had been the last game of the first set. “I had a chance to close it out,” Murray said. “He had quite a few chances and I made a few mistakes.”

He added: “For the most part I didn't create a break point chance, so he served well. He hit a lot of lines, was going for big shots, and he played too well.”

Asked whether Wawrinka had surprised him, Murray said: “He served and volleyed a few times at the beginning of the match on some quite big points. On 30 30 points and maybe a couple of deuce points, he did it.

“Apart from that, he just hit the ball extremely well today. It was difficult to dictate too many of the points. And when he had the wind with him, he served very well and got the first strike in on the rally. I had to do a lot of defending from the far side of the court.”