Andy Murray's emotional Wimbledon swansong began on a disappointing note as he and brother Jamie Murray lost in the first round of the men's doubles to Rinky Hijikata and John Peers.
The 2013 and 2016 champion paired up with his sibling for the first time at SW19 after pulling out of the men's singles event due to his back injury, but their union was brought to a swift end.
With one hour and 28 minutes played, the imperious Peers and Hijikata sealed a 7-6[6] 6-4 victory to send the Murray brothers crashing out at the first hurdle, before the tributes began to pour in for an emotional Andy.
The 37-year-old has not closed the chapter on his Wimbledon career completely - he will partner up with compatriot Emma Raducanu in the mixed doubles - but in the company of legends, Thursday's defeat turned into an evening of Centre Court celebration.
Sue Barker emerged onto the grass to rapturous applause to interview Murray, while John McEnroe, Novak Djokovic, Martina Navratilova, Iga Swiatek and many of his countrymen - such as Tim Henman, Cameron Norrie, Jack Draper and Daniel Evans - lined up to listen to the two-time winner reflect on his career.
Struggling to hold back the tears 😢
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Centre Court gives a standing ovation to Andy Murray 👏#BBCTennis #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/sUEDGxJd4B
Murray addressed by icons after doubles loss
A montage of Murray's greatest moments played on the Centre Court screens, accompanied by commentary from legends such as Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Serena Williams, his former mixed doubles partner.
The 37-year-old had to pause for tears occasionally while also demonstrating his penchant for quick wit and making the crowd laugh, all while his family watched on with beaming smiles.
However, the Wimbledon crowd need not wait much longer to witness Murray back in action again, as he and Raducanu square off against Marcelo Arevalo and Zhang Shuai in their opening mixed doubles match on Friday.
What happened in the Wimbledon battle of the Brits?
Before the Murray brothers were eliminated at the first hurdle, two all-British battles stole the headlines in Thursday's action, where Harriet Dart firstly avenged her recent losses to national number one Katie Boulter.
© Reuters
Dart was overcome by emotion both during and after beating her on-court rival 4-6 6-1 7-6[8], but there was a surprise result in the men's affair between Norrie and Draper, the man who deposed him as British number one.
Draper was regarded as the favourite for the showdown on account of his superior form in 2024, but Norrie's experience came to the fore in a 7-6[3] 6-4 7-6[6] triumph.
Earlier in the day on centre court, British Wild Card Jacob Fearnley held his own against Djokovic and even took a set off of the seven-time champion, only to go down 3-6 4-6 7-5 5-7.
Iga Swiatek also sunk Petra Martic with ease - 6-4 6-3 - but there were a number of upsets on day four, as all of Jessica Pegula, Hubert Hurkacz and Stefanos Tsitsipas were knocked out.
Ben Knapton
