LONDON - Andy Murray said he will have to improve dramatically to mount a successful defense of his Wimbledon title after the world No 1 meekly exited the Queen's Club tournament on Tuesday.

Murray crashed to one of the worst defeats of his career as Australian world No 90 Jordan Thompson ended the Scot's reign as Queen's champion with an astonishing 7-6 (4), 6-2 first-round victory.

Making the 30-year-old's humiliation even worse, Thompson, originally beaten in the qualifying rounds, was only playing as a last-minute replacement for the injured Aljaz Bedene.

It was the worst possible preparation for Wimbledon, with the grasscourt Grand Slam set to get underway on July 3.

Having reached the French Open semifinals earlier this month, Murray must have hoped he was back on track after his poor run during an injury-plagued first half of the season.

Instead, the three-time Grand Slam champion plans to go back to the practice courts with coach Ivan Lendl in a last-ditch bid to find a solution to his struggles.

"I said before the tournament there was still a lot of work to be done, and after the French Open I knew that I was still quite far from where I needed to be," Murray said.

"One tournament doesn't change all of what had gone on just beforehand, so that's why I got back on the practice court quite soon after Paris.

"But I was certainly feeling better in the build-up here than I was going into the French. I would have expected to have played and done a bit better."

Murray has now failed to get past the second round in three of his last four tournaments. and has lost before the quarterfinals six times this year.

It is a remarkable crisis for a player who just eight months ago was sitting on top of the world after a golden year that included titles at Wimbledon, the Olympics and the ATP World Tour Finals.

Murray looks bereft of form and focus at present and he conceded a lack of confidence was a factor.

"I don't feel like loads of my game has changed, but obviously right now I'm not playing as well as I was 12 months ago," he said.

"Most of that comes down to confidence in matches. It's not so much that I have changed my serve or my technique.

"It's just when you're playing a lot of matches and winning consistently helps you make better decisions at important moments.

"Hopefully I get enough time on the court to work on some things, because I'm going to need to.

"If I play like that, I certainly won't win Wimbledon, but I can play better than that."

Murray is usually at his most formidable on grass and his two Wimbledon titles in 2013 and 2016 were both preceded by Queen's Club triumphs.

Claiming that a lack of match practice on grass was a problem, Murray said he would consider adding some exhibition matches to his schedule next week.

Agence France-Presse

(China Daily 06/22/2017 page23)