Qatar Open: Andy Murray loses to teenager Jakub Mensik in lengthy battle
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Andy Murray lost to a teenage opponent for only the third time since 2007
Britain's Andy Murray was unable to back up his first win of 2024 as he lost to 18-year-old Jakub Mensik in a rollercoaster Qatar Open match.
Murray, 36, ended a run of six defeats by beating Alexandre Muller on Tuesday but lost 7-6 (8-6) 6-7 (3-7) 7-6 (7-4) to 116th-ranked Mensik 24 hours later.
Trailing 5-2 in the decider, the Scot clawed back both breaks as his Czech opponent could not serve out.
However, Mensik reset mentally to win and reach his first ATP quarter-final.
"I'm just speechless right now, I don't know what to say," said Mensik, who will play Russian top seed Andrey Rublev on Thursday.
"It was a tough match - [Murray] is a great player and I watched him on the TV winning Wimbledon twice. It is unbelievable at this age he can still compete with the best players of the world."
Elsewhere, Britain's Dan Evans lost 6-4 6-2 to Australia's Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round of the Los Cabos Open.
Murray set to drop outside world's top 60
Having reached the final in Doha last year, Murray had a significant number of ranking points to defend - and losing in the second round means the former world number one will drop outside the top 60 next week.
In a troubling start to 2024, Murray lost his opening four matches of the new season, which led to questions about how long he planned to keep playing and provoked a defiant response from the three-time Grand Slam champion.
Murray, who turns 37 in May, insisted he would continue to "keep fighting" as he aims to play at a level which he believes he remains "capable of" delivering.
Earning his first win of the year against French world number 75 Muller was a huge relief and a step in the right direction.
Losing to Mensik - a talented player with a powerful game and considerably bright future, but yet to crack the world's top 100 - is another setback.
Murray left to rue missed volley on set point
The outcome of the match could have been different had Murray won the first set, as he really should have done.
On the first of two set points when leading 6-4 in the tie-break, Murray planted a volley into the net with the court gaping, drawing shrieks from the shocked crowd and leaving the Scot covering his face with his hand.
Murray went on to lose the set and was suddenly chasing the match.
Neither player was able to break serve in a tight second set before Murray, with confident hitting and delicate touches, levelled after making a fast start in another tie-break.
Having not faced a break point since the third game of the match, Murray lost serve for 1-0 - shortly after taking a tumble on his right ankle - and an increasingly confident Mensik moved a double break up at 5-2.
But Murray, just as he did to stop Mensik serving out the first set, used his vast experience to fight back.
Sensing nervousness down the other end of the court, Murray increased the aggression of his groundstrokes to pile on the pressure but he could not maintain the momentum in the tie-break as Mensik regained his composure to seal a memorable win.
Murray's frustrations were clear as he made a sharp exit after a tense contest lasting three hours and 23 minutes - the longest match in the Qatar Open's history.