The pair struggled for more than four and a half hours in a five-set thriller, with Tsitsipas finally prevailing 2-6 7-6 3-6 6-3 6-4 to advance to the second round at Flushing Prats.
However, Murray was disappointed by the time his opponent spent off the court; Tsitsipas took two breaks in the bathroom for more than seven minutes and also received a medical break.
“It’s disappointing because I feel it influenced the outcome of the match,” Murray said in post-match reports. “I’m not saying I win this game necessarily, sure, but it influenced what happened after those breaks.
“I value him a lot. I think he’s a brilliant player. I think he’s great for the game, but I don’t have time for that and I lost respect for him.”
Tsitsipas, who did not break any rules, took long breaks in the toilet at the end of the second and fourth sets and was given medical time for an apparent foot injury before the fourth set.
Murray could be heard complaining about referee Nico Helwerth and Open US match supervisor Gerry Armstrong about Tsitsipas’ time spent.
The Scot said that before the match he told his team that he “expected” his opponent “if things didn’t go well” and revealed that there have been discussions about changing the rules to prevent these from happening. long stops.
“In short, they [the officials] There’s nothing I can do because the rules are there, “Murray said.” But I’m on the players ’board and we talk about it all the time, about changing those rules, trying to make it less easy to exploit the rules, I guess.
“Some suggestions are if you take a medical break or a break before, say, my service, you lose the game. I just started set a love. This is something that has been discussed. A couple of others things are, like, you get two five-minute breaks during a game or something, and that’s it.There are several different suggestions.
“That’s what I feel, but if everyone feels like it’s totally fun and has no problem with it, maybe it’s me that’s unreasonable, but I think it’s nonsense, and he knows it too.”
After the match, Tsitsipas insisted that he had done nothing wrong and that he had no harsh feelings towards Murray.
“If there’s anything I need to say, we should talk to both of us to understand what went wrong,” he told reporters. “I don’t think I’ve broken any rules. I’ve followed the guidelines, as is everything. Yes, definitely something for both of us to chat about and make sure of.
“I don’t know how my opponent feels when I’m playing the game. It’s not really my priority. As for the rules and I stick to what the ATP says is fair, then the rest is fine. I have nothing against him. Absolutely nothing. “
Tsitsipas, who is pursuing his first grand slam title, went on to explain why he took so long on those breaks in the bathroom.
“Well, I think it’s clear that I took my clothes off when I came out of court,” he said. “That’s the amount of time I need to change clothes and get back on track in the yard takes some time.
“I don’t know what the rule is about that, if there is one. But as far as I know, you will be allowed to take two breaks in the toilet to change your clothes in a set of five and one of three in three. setter.
“I followed him throughout my career. I’ve never broken any rules, so I see no reason why this should be a problem.”
Elsewhere, women’s individual defending champion Naomi Osaka relaxed the first-round match with a direct victory over Marie Bouzkova.
In his first Grand Slam appearance since retiring from the French Open in June, Osaka were pushed hard in the first set by their Czech opponent, before comfortably closing out the match 6-4 6-1 by move on to the second round.