Andy Murray last night praised the �awesome� support from Scotland after his dreams of becoming the first British man to win Wimbledon for 73 years ended in crushing disappointment for the whole country.

Andy Murray last night praised the "awesome" support from Scotland after his dreams of becoming the first British man to win Wimbledon for 73 years ended in crushing disappointment for the whole country.

The 22-year-old from Dunblane was beaten in four nerve-tingling and gruelling sets, 6-4 4-6 7-6 7-6 by big-hitting Andy Roddick but he had a message for his supporters north of the Border.

"I don't get a chance to go back as much as I would like," he said. "But my friends and family tell me the support has been great. And that's awesome. It is always nice when you've got people behind me. I am sure Scotland was rooting for me."

Murray also promised to come back stronger from his defeat and has targeted success at the next grand slam event, the US Open in New York in August. "I'll move on very quickly," he said after his hugely disappointing defeat.

"The US Open is my best surface, my best chance to win a slam and I will give it my best shot there."

He praised the Centre Court crowd who cheered him to five victories at Wimbledon 2009, saying: "They were excellent for me. Hopefully I will have the same support next year."

First Minister Alex Salmond paid tribute to Murray after the defeat. He said: "Andy has made Scotland proud by having such a magnificent championship and should take great encouragement from reaching his first semi-final at Wimbledon.

Roddick was typically magnanimous in victory, admitting the pressure was on the Scot, while he "could come out and swing".

He added: "I had to play my best tennis to win.

"I can't say enough good things about Andy's game."