Andy Murray fell victim to a fightback from a fellow experienced campaigner as Grigor Dimitrov shoved the Brit out in the first round of the Brisbane International on Monday.
The Bulgarian who won the Queensland title in 2017, sprang into action on the first day of the new year to overcome a one-set deficit and overhaul the 36-year-old Scot with three Grand Slam titles in his resume.
Murray now has only the Kooyong exhibition in Melbourne next week to prepare for the January 14 start of the Australian Open in Melbourne.
The tournament is back on the ATP calendar after last being held in 2019, with pauses due to Covid and calendar modifications.
Murray, champion here in 2012 and 2013, had few chances to relive past glory as he failed to hang on after winning the opening set.
The former No. 1, who missed Davis Cup in November with a shoulder injury, went down to a 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 defeat four months after losing to Dimitrov at the US Open.
