Murray Admits He Fell Short of the Desired Results with Djokovic

Andy Murray has commented that he "probably failed to achieve the results I would have liked" during his short-lived tenure coaching his past rival, Novak Djokovic.

Murray, who ended his professional career at the 2024 Paris Olympics, joined Djokovic's team last November, but the arrangement concluded after only half a year.

In his debut 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 anticipation was that it was going to be immensely difficult," Murray said in an interview.

He added, "Novak, like myself, is a perfectionist in terms of the way he approaches his tennis, [it] is highly intense."

Assessing the Period

In retrospect, Murray expressed that he is pleased he took on the role. "It's an amazing experience that I've had," he observed.

During their time together, Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz to reach the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was compelled to withdraw injured from his match against Alexander Zverev.

Afterwards, upon his comeback, Djokovic suffered early exits 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 said.

"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 entails."

An Intimidating Start and Playing Reflections

Murray also recounted 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 described as "awkward."

Reflecting on his own remarkable playing career, Murray reflected he "should 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 modern tennis calendar, a topic of concern among top players.

Murray, who was affected by injuries in his latter career, had opposed 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 indicates players are getting injured more than before. But I do think players are more fatigued and worn out mentally than they were before because they're spending more days away on the road," Murray explained.

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