French Open: Andy Murray Loses To Stan Wawrinka, Dan Evans Beaten By Kei Nishikori

Andy Murray's return to the clay proved to be a chastening experience as he lost in straight sets to Stan Wawrinka in the French Open first round.

The 33-year-old Scot was well below the level of 2015 champion Wawrinka, who eased to a 6-1 6-3 6-2 victory.

Murray's exit came after the British number one Dan Evans lost to Japan's Kei Nishikori in a fluctuating five-setter.

Evans has lost on all three appearances in the main draw at Roland Garros after a 1-6 6-1 7-6 (7-3) 1-6 6-4 defeat.

British number three Cameron Norrie and qualifier Liam Broady are left to carry the flag in the men's singles.

• Murray out of sorts on clay return

Excitement and a sense of disbelief greeted the draw which pitted Murray against fellow three-time Grand Slam champion Wawrinka - who the Scot faced in his last match on clay over three years ago.

For Murray, it was a remarkable twist of fate which even left him "amused". He had not played on the surface since a brutal five-set semi-final against Wawrinka at Roland Garros in June 2017.

That proved to be the start of the hip trouble which left him needing two major surgeries and on the verge of retirement last year.

Wawrinka, 35, has also seen his career stalled by a knee injury in recent years and it led to plenty of intrigue about how a poignant reunion between the two veterans at Roland Garros would pan out.

Ultimately, it did not end up being much of a contest as 16th seed Wawrinka ruthlessly dismissed an out-of-sorts Murray.

The Briton had beaten Wawrinka when they met in the European Open final in Antwerp in October, but a repeat result never looked likely.

The Swiss has climbed back up the rankings after finding form and fitness, showing why in a one-sided first set where he broke serve three times and won two-thirds of the points.

Murray's first-serve percentage was down at a lowly 21% and that was punished by Wawrinka, whose heavy ball-striking was too much for Murray to handle.

Even though Murray's service game slightly improved, he continued to look flat and unable to rouse the spirit which has seen him turn matches around so often in the past.

Afterwards, Murray said he was trying to be calmer on the court after regularly showing his frustration during matches in the recent Cincinnati Masters and US Open.

"It was something that was brought up to me and I tried to sort of keep my emotions in check," he said.

"I don't know whether that affected me in any way or not, but that was probably why it was quieter than usual."

Wawrinka maintained his level in the second and third sets as he continued to punch holes in Murray's defence, ending up with 42 winners as he cruised to victory in one hour and 37 minutes.

The match was played on a cold evening under the new floodlights on an open Court Philippe Chatrier, but Murray said the conditions were not a factor for his below-par performance.

"I didn't play well. I served under 40% first serves in the court, which is just not good enough against anyone, and especially someone as good as Stan," he said.

"You want to be serving in the 60%, that sort of region. You won't see many players serve under 40% the rest of the tournament."