Murray Concedes He Fell Short of the Targeted Results with Djokovic

Andy Murray has revealed that he "probably didn't get the results I would have liked" during his brief tenure coaching his one-time rival, Novak Djokovic.

Murray, who concluded his playing career at the 2024 Paris Olympics, became part of Djokovic's staff last November, but the partnership dissolved after only half a year.

In his maiden coaching role, the 38-year-old Murray teamed up with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the 2025 Australian Open and three other tournaments.

"The role involves coaching not only one of the best tennis players but one of the best athletes of all time, so my assumption was that it was going to be exceptionally tough," Murray remarked in an interview.

He continued, "Novak, like myself, is a challenging character in terms of the way he approaches his tennis, [it] is incredibly rigorous."

Assessing the Period

In retrospect, Murray stated that he is glad he undertook the role. "It's an amazing experience that I've had," he commented.

During their time together, Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz to make 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 experienced first-round losses in Qatar and at Indian Wells, before falling in the Miami Open final to Czech teenager Jakub Mensik.

"It was unfortunate what happened in Australia with the injury, but I watched him play ridiculous tennis in that tournament," Murray recalled.

"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 disheartened. Probably didn't get the results I would have liked for him. But I learned a lot about what coaching involves."

A Demanding Start and Playing Reflections

Murray also shared an story from his first day on the job, when he was told to join Djokovic on a run. He suffered through calf cramps so as not to let down his fellow former world number one—a moment he labeled "embarrassing."

Reflecting on his own successful playing career, Murray said he "should have taken more breaks" to savour his successes, including after his two Olympic gold medals.

Perspective Regarding the Tennis Tour

The conversation turned to the present-day tennis calendar, a topic of concern among top players.

Murray, who was affected by injuries in his final seasons, had opposed increasing the number of two-week ATP 1,000 tournaments, believing the increased time on the road would be detrimental to players.

"I don't think there's anything that suggests players are getting injured more than before. But I do think players are more fatigued and psychologically drained than they were before because they're spending more days away on the road," Murray explained.

"When you're more exhausted, you're more vulnerable to pain and discomfort. My feeling is that's what players are sensing now, just being away for longer.

"I don't think the matches are so much more taxing than they were 10, 15 years ago. But it's the quantity of time that players are away on the road that's genuinely an issue."