🔗 Share this article Murray Concedes He Fell Short of the Desired Outcomes with Djokovic Novak Djokovic claimed 25 victories out of 36 matches against his long-time competitor Andy Murray. Andy Murray has revealed that he "probably failed to achieve the results I would have hoped for" during his brief tenure mentoring his former rival, Novak Djokovic. Murray, who concluded his professional career at the 2024 Paris Olympics, entered Djokovic's team last November, but the partnership ended after only half a year. In his first-ever coaching role, the 38-year-old Murray teamed up with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open in 2025 and a handful of other tournaments. "It's a job 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 exceptionally tough," Murray noted in an interview. He continued, "Novak, like myself, is a perfectionist in terms of the way he approaches his tennis, [it] is incredibly rigorous." Assessing the Stint In retrospect, Murray conveyed that he is happy he accepted the role. "It's an unforgettable experience that I've had," he observed. During their time together, Djokovic defeated Carlos Alcaraz to make the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was compelled to withdraw injured from his match against Alexander Zverev. Subsequently, upon his return, Djokovic endured first-round losses in Qatar and at Indian Wells, before losing the Miami Open final to Czech teenager Jakub Mensik. "It was a shame what happened in Australia with the injury, but I watched him play sensational 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 let down. Probably didn't get the results I would have liked for him. But I gained valuable insight about what coaching entails." A Demanding Start and Career Reflections Murray also shared an incident from his first day on the job, when he was invited to join Djokovic on a run. He experienced calf cramps so as not to fail his fellow former world number one—a moment he described as "humiliating." Reflecting on his own stellar playing career, Murray reflected he "could have taken more breaks" to savour his successes, including after his two Olympic gold medals. Views on the Tennis Schedule The conversation moved onto 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, arguing the increased time on the road would negatively impact players. "I don't think there's anything that suggests 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 stated. "When you're more exhausted, you're more sensitive to pain and discomfort. My view 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 volume of time that players are away on the road that's genuinely an issue."
Novak Djokovic claimed 25 victories out of 36 matches against his long-time competitor Andy Murray. Andy Murray has revealed that he "probably failed to achieve the results I would have hoped for" during his brief tenure mentoring his former rival, Novak Djokovic. Murray, who concluded his professional career at the 2024 Paris Olympics, entered Djokovic's team last November, but the partnership ended after only half a year. In his first-ever coaching role, the 38-year-old Murray teamed up with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open in 2025 and a handful of other tournaments. "It's a job 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 exceptionally tough," Murray noted in an interview. He continued, "Novak, like myself, is a perfectionist in terms of the way he approaches his tennis, [it] is incredibly rigorous." Assessing the Stint In retrospect, Murray conveyed that he is happy he accepted the role. "It's an unforgettable experience that I've had," he observed. During their time together, Djokovic defeated Carlos Alcaraz to make the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was compelled to withdraw injured from his match against Alexander Zverev. Subsequently, upon his return, Djokovic endured first-round losses in Qatar and at Indian Wells, before losing the Miami Open final to Czech teenager Jakub Mensik. "It was a shame what happened in Australia with the injury, but I watched him play sensational 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 let down. Probably didn't get the results I would have liked for him. But I gained valuable insight about what coaching entails." A Demanding Start and Career Reflections Murray also shared an incident from his first day on the job, when he was invited to join Djokovic on a run. He experienced calf cramps so as not to fail his fellow former world number one—a moment he described as "humiliating." Reflecting on his own stellar playing career, Murray reflected he "could have taken more breaks" to savour his successes, including after his two Olympic gold medals. Views on the Tennis Schedule The conversation moved onto 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, arguing the increased time on the road would negatively impact players. "I don't think there's anything that suggests 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 stated. "When you're more exhausted, you're more sensitive to pain and discomfort. My view 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 volume of time that players are away on the road that's genuinely an issue."