Andy Murray urged to ‘stop thinking of himself’ after first round exit at French Open
Mats Wilander believes he should reconsider accepting wildcards for Grand Slams
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Your support makes all the difference.Andy Murray has been urged to reconsider accepting wild cards for major tournaments at the expense of emerging young players.
Seven-time Grand Slam champion Mats Wilander made the remark after the Briton crashed out of the French Open in the first round.
The former world No 1 squeezed into Roland Garros after being handed a wildcard, but the 33-year-old was soundly beaten on Sunday (6-1, 6-3, 6-2) by Stan Wawrinka.
"I keep getting a little disappointed, is it his right to be out there doing that? I did it and I shouldn't have, it was the biggest mistake I did in my career," Wilander told Eurosport.
"I think Murray needs to stop thinking of himself and start thinking about who he was. Does he have a right to be out there taking wild cards from the young players?"
Murray has made a remarkable recovery since last year after overcoming multiple hip surgeries.
Validation arrived through victory in Antwerp last October, with several other promising performances suggesting he could yet return to contention in the Grand Slams.
However, Wilander insists the three-time Grand Slam winner must search for reasons behind continuing to play.
"It's tough to quit, for sure. By giving us all hope by playing, it's just not right," Wilander said.
"I love the fact that he is back and trying. Hopefully he'll figure out why he's doing it."
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