🔗 Share this article Murray Admits He Didn't Achieve the Desired Results for Djokovic Novak Djokovic secured 25 victories out of 36 matches against his long-time rival Andy Murray. Andy Murray has revealed that he "probably didn't get the results I would have hoped for" during his short-lived tenure coaching his one-time rival, Novak Djokovic. Murray, who finalized his professional career at the 2024 Paris Olympics, joined Djokovic's coaching setup last November, but the collaboration ended after only half a year. In his debut position as a coach, the 38-year-old Murray worked with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open in 2025 and a handful of 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 expectation was that it was going to be immensely difficult," Murray noted in an interview. He went on to say, "Novak, like myself, is a challenging character in terms of the way he approaches his tennis, [it] is incredibly rigorous." Reflecting on the Experience In retrospect, Murray expressed that he is pleased he took on the role. "It's an incredible experience that I've had," he commented. During their time together, Djokovic defeated Carlos Alcaraz to reach the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was forced to retire with an injury from his clash against Alexander Zverev. Following that, upon his return, Djokovic experienced early exits 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 noted. "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 learned a lot about what coaching entails." A Demanding Start and Career Reflections Murray also disclosed an incident from his first day on the job, when he was invited to join Djokovic on a run. He suffered through calf cramps so as not to fail his fellow former world number one—a moment he described as "humiliating." Reflecting on his own successful playing career, Murray reflected he "should have taken more breaks" to relish his successes, including after his two Olympic gold medals. Opinion About the Tennis Tour The conversation turned to the modern tennis calendar, a topic of debate among top players. Murray, who was hindered by injuries in his later years, had voted against increasing the number of two-week ATP 1,000 tournaments, arguing the increased time on the road would be detrimental to players. "I don't think there's anything that shows 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 commented. "When you're more tired, you're more vulnerable to pain and discomfort. My belief is that's what players are feeling 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 volume of time that players are away on the road that's genuinely an issue."
Novak Djokovic secured 25 victories out of 36 matches against his long-time rival Andy Murray. Andy Murray has revealed that he "probably didn't get the results I would have hoped for" during his short-lived tenure coaching his one-time rival, Novak Djokovic. Murray, who finalized his professional career at the 2024 Paris Olympics, joined Djokovic's coaching setup last November, but the collaboration ended after only half a year. In his debut position as a coach, the 38-year-old Murray worked with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open in 2025 and a handful of 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 expectation was that it was going to be immensely difficult," Murray noted in an interview. He went on to say, "Novak, like myself, is a challenging character in terms of the way he approaches his tennis, [it] is incredibly rigorous." Reflecting on the Experience In retrospect, Murray expressed that he is pleased he took on the role. "It's an incredible experience that I've had," he commented. During their time together, Djokovic defeated Carlos Alcaraz to reach the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was forced to retire with an injury from his clash against Alexander Zverev. Following that, upon his return, Djokovic experienced early exits 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 noted. "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 learned a lot about what coaching entails." A Demanding Start and Career Reflections Murray also disclosed an incident from his first day on the job, when he was invited to join Djokovic on a run. He suffered through calf cramps so as not to fail his fellow former world number one—a moment he described as "humiliating." Reflecting on his own successful playing career, Murray reflected he "should have taken more breaks" to relish his successes, including after his two Olympic gold medals. Opinion About the Tennis Tour The conversation turned to the modern tennis calendar, a topic of debate among top players. Murray, who was hindered by injuries in his later years, had voted against increasing the number of two-week ATP 1,000 tournaments, arguing the increased time on the road would be detrimental to players. "I don't think there's anything that shows 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 commented. "When you're more tired, you're more vulnerable to pain and discomfort. My belief is that's what players are feeling 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 volume of time that players are away on the road that's genuinely an issue."