Andy Murray hits back at BBC Sport and admits he is in a ‘terrible moment’ in worrying tweet

DEFIANT Andy Murray hit back at a BBC Sport article suggesting it was time to quit tennis.

But the battling Brit and three-time Grand Slam champ did admit he is in a "terrible moment".

Murray, playing with a metal hip since major resurfacing surgery in 2019, has lost his last five matches dating back to October - with just one win in ten.

That includes his disappointing first-round exit to Tomas Martin Etcheverry at the Australian Open.

And he then suffered another painful defeat on Monday when he crashed out in Montpellier against Benoit Paire who had not won an ATP Tour match for 18 months.

That prompted an article on the BBC Sport website which implied Murray would be better off retiring and spending time with his wife Kim and their four kids - rather than continuing to travel the world given his recent poor results.

But the Dunblane ace was furious with the suggestion that carrying on was doing more harm than good and reiterated that he is still giving it his all on the court.

World No49 Murray tweeted: "Tarnishing my legacy? Do me a favour.

"I’m in a terrible moment right now I’ll give you that.

"Most people would quit and give up in my situation right now.

"But I’m not most people and my mind works differently.

"I won’t quit.

"I will keep fighting and working to produce the performances I know I’m capable of."

Andy Roddick was among the many in the tennis community to throw his support behind Murray, who has two Wimbledon titles, 733 career wins, was world No1 and earned more than £50million in prize money.

Roddick, who like Murray was world No1 and won the US Open, replied: "Preach!

"Imagine telling an accomplished iconic adult your opinion on what they should choose for work and when they should do it….

"This is such a dumb, thirsty article. Can’t take a legacy away. Accomplishment lives forever."

After kickstarting 2024 with three straight defeats - in Brisbane, Melbourne and Montpellier - Murray has entered the events in Marseille, Doha and Dubai.

But he has already hinted this could be his final season on tour and he may never play at the Australian Open again after confessing he is "not really enjoying tennis" at the end of 2023.

Speaking at Melbourne Park where he is a five-time finalist, Murray said: "It's a definite possibility that will be the last time I play here.

"In comparison to the matches that I played here last year, it's the complete opposite feeling walking off the court."

As for a retirement date, he continued: "I have an idea of when I would probably like to finish, so much of that depends on how you're playing.

"The time frame for that narrows when you play and have results like today."