Murray Concedes He Fell Short of the Wanted Outcomes for Djokovic

Andy Murray has commented that he "probably fell short of the results I would have liked" during his six-month tenure mentoring his past rival, Novak Djokovic.

Murray, who ended his playing career at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, became part of Djokovic's team last November, but the arrangement ended after only half a year.

In his first-ever position as a coach, the 38-year-old Murray partnered with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the 2025 Australian Open 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 assumption was that it was going to be exceptionally tough," Murray remarked in an interview.

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

Assessing the Experience

Upon reflection, Murray conveyed that he is glad he accepted the role. "It's an incredible experience that I've had," he observed.

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 clash against Alexander Zverev.

Afterwards, upon his comeback, 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 unfortunate what happened in Australia with the injury, but I watched him play extraordinary tennis in that tournament," Murray said.

"After the injury, it was undoubtedly a difficult few months for him, but also I think for the team and all of us. I was let down. Probably didn't get the results I would have liked for him. But I learned a lot about what coaching is."

A Demanding Start and Playing Reflections

Murray also disclosed an anecdote 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 let down his fellow former world number one—a moment he labeled "embarrassing."

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 present-day tennis calendar, a topic of concern among top players.

Murray, who was plagued by injuries in his later years, had voted against increasing the number of two-week ATP 1,000 tournaments, saying the increased time on the road would harm players.

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

"When you're more exhausted, you're more sensitive 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 demanding than they were 10, 15 years ago. But it's the amount of time that players are away on the road that's truly an issue."