Murray ‘unlikely’ to play Eastbourne but keen to get ‘on the court with top players’ to regain competitive edge as he battles back from recent groin injury

Andy Murray insists the nature of his defeat to Matteo Berrettini is only likely to make him more determined to overcome his injury nightmare and be competitive against the best in the game.

The former world No 1 and three-time Grand Slam champion suffered a straight sets defeat to the Italian at the Cinch Championships on Thursday, ending his first tournament action since March.

Murray, who beat Benoit Paire earlier in the week, has been battling a niggling groin injury, the latest in a host of setbacks that have plagued him over the last three years, and there was evidence of top level rustiness against big-hitting Berrettini who ran out a 6-3 6-3 winner to set up a quarter-final date with Dan Evans.

Murray, who underwent hip resurfacing surgery in 2019, is desperate not to just make up the numbers despite injuries taking their toll and the 34-year-old believes the feeling after his defeat to the world No 9 can only help.

“My immediate feeling and the thing when I get into the locker room after a match like that is I was telling my team ‘these are the things I want to improve’,” he said after his second round defeat.

“These are the things that will need to get better, if I want to win those matches and be more competitive.