Murray Concedes He Didn't Achieve the Wanted Results for Djokovic

Andy Murray has revealed that he "probably fell short of the results I would have wanted" during his brief tenure mentoring his past rival, Novak Djokovic.

Murray, who concluded his illustrious career at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, entered Djokovic's coaching setup last November, but the arrangement dissolved after only half a year.

In his first-ever position as a coach, the 38-year-old Murray teamed up with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open in 2025 and three other tournaments.

"You're working with 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 exceptionally tough," Murray remarked 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 Period

Upon reflection, Murray stated that he is pleased he accepted 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 compelled to withdraw injured from his match against Alexander Zverev.

Following that, upon his return, Djokovic suffered 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 extraordinary tennis in that tournament," Murray noted.

"After the injury, it was definitely 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 gained valuable insight about what coaching involves."

A Demanding Start and Playing Reflections

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

Reflecting on his own remarkable playing career, Murray reflected he "could have taken more breaks" to relish his successes, including after his two Olympic victories.

Perspective Regarding the Tennis Calendar

The conversation moved onto the present-day tennis calendar, a topic of discussion 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 harm players.

"I don't think there's anything that shows players are getting injured more than before. But I do think players are more weary 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 susceptible 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 grueling than they were 10, 15 years ago. But it's the quantity of time that players are away on the road that's actually an issue."