Murray Admits He Didn't Achieve the Wanted Outcomes with Djokovic
Andy Murray has stated that he "probably fell short of the results I would have wanted" during his short-lived tenure mentoring his former rival, Novak Djokovic.
Murray, who ended his playing career at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, joined Djokovic's coaching setup last November, but the arrangement ended after only half a year.
In his maiden position as a coach, the 38-year-old Murray worked with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open in 2025 and several additional tournaments.
"The role involves coaching not only one of the best tennis players but one of the best athletes of all time, so my anticipation was that it was going to be immensely difficult," Murray noted in an interview.
He went on to say, "Novak, like myself, is a perfectionist in terms of the way he goes about his tennis, [it] is incredibly rigorous."
Assessing the Period
In retrospect, Murray expressed that he is happy he took on the role. "It's an amazing experience that I've had," he observed.
During their time together, Djokovic defeated Carlos Alcaraz to reach the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was had to pull out due to injury from his match against Alexander Zverev.
Following that, upon his return, Djokovic suffered opening-round defeats in Qatar and at Indian Wells, before falling in the Miami Open final to Czech teenager Jakub Mensik.
"It was regrettable what happened in Australia with the injury, but I watched him play extraordinary tennis in that tournament," Murray said.
"After the injury, it was certainly a difficult few months for him, but also I think for the team and all of us. I was disappointed. Probably didn't get the results I would have liked for him. But I came away wiser about what coaching involves."
A Challenging Start and Playing Reflections
Murray also recounted an anecdote from his first day on the job, when he was asked to join Djokovic on a run. He endured calf cramps so as not to fail his fellow former world number one—a moment he called "awkward."
Reflecting on his own successful playing career, Murray reflected he "would have taken more breaks" to savour his successes, including after his two Olympic gold medals.
Views on the Tennis Tour
The conversation turned to the modern tennis calendar, a topic of concern among top players.
Murray, who was affected by injuries in his latter career, had been against increasing the number of two-week ATP 1,000 tournaments, arguing the increased time on the road would negatively impact players.
"I don't think there's anything that indicates players are getting injured more than before. But I do think players are more fatigued and mentally more fatigued than they were before because they're spending more days away on the road," Murray stated.
"When you're more tired, you're more vulnerable to pain and discomfort. My view is that's what players are sensing now, just being away for longer.
"I don't think the matches are so much more grueling than they were 10, 15 years ago. But it's the volume of time that players are away on the road that's actually an issue."
