"The abuse is insane" "It is horrible honestly" - Andy Murray becoming target of abusers after Swiss Indoors Basel loss saddens fans 

Andy Murray's campaign at the 2023 Swiss Indoors Basel came to an unceremonious end in the second round as he lost to Argentina's Tomas Martin Etcheverry 7-6(5), 3-6, 2-6 on Wednesday (October 25). The former World No. 1 was subjected to abuse from a few disgruntled fans soon after, prompting the tennis universe to come out in his defense.

Murray had gotten off to a great start during his second-round outing in Basel, winning the opening set in hard-fought fashion. The Brit's younger opponent, however, flipped the script on him in the next two sets, breaking serve thrice en route to registering a three-set win in just over three hours.

A select few fans, many of whom were likely tennis bettors, were far from impressed with the nature of Andy Murray's defeat. Their expletive-filled comments were met with disappointment from the tennis world. One fan insisted that the rampant abuse players receive online was "insane".

"It’s not new, but the amount of abuse players get from those who bet on matches is INSANE," they wrote.

Another fan, meanwhile, suggested that Murray didn't deserve such treatment, considering how he was the best male player outside of the Big 3 to have plied their trade in the 21st century.

"It's so horrible, honestly. Murray's probably the greatest player of his era (minus the Big 3, of course)," they wrote.

Here are a few more reactions from social media:

Andy Murray has enjoyed a good season in 2023 despite recent slump in form

Andy Murray poses as the runner-up at the 2023 Qatar ExxonMobil Open

Andy Murray, meanwhile, has put together a respectable season in 2023, winning 31 of his 49 tour-level and ATP Challenger matches. The highlights of the Brit's year include winning three Challenger-level titles and finishing as the runner-up to Daniil Medvedev at the 2023 Qatar ExxonMobil Open.

The 3-time Major winner was also instrumental in Great Britain qualifying for the 2023 Davis Cup Finals knockout stage. While he missed his country's first tie against Australia, he contributed to their 2-1 win against Switzerland by beating Leandro Riedi in the first singles match.

Having said that, Murray's form of late has been suspect. The 36-year-old has dropped four of his last five matches. He also gave a rather listless performance during his second-round defeat to Grigor Dimitrov at the 2023 US Open a few weeks ago.

Andy Murray has still managed to get his ranking as high as 40 in the world, though, and will be looking to end his 2023 season on a high note by going deep at the 2023 Paris Masters.