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

Andy Murray has revealed that he "probably failed to achieve the results I would have wanted" during his brief tenure mentoring his former rival, Novak Djokovic.

Murray, who ended his illustrious career at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, became part of Djokovic's coaching setup last November, but the collaboration concluded 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 2025 Australian Open and several additional tournaments.

"You're working with 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 extremely challenging," Murray said in an interview.

He went on to say, "Novak, like myself, is a challenging character in terms of the way he tackles his tennis, [it] is extremely demanding."

Assessing the Period

Upon reflection, 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 injured from his match against Alexander Zverev.

Following that, upon his return, Djokovic experienced opening-round defeats in Qatar and at Indian Wells, before being defeated in 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 definitely 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 is."

An Intimidating Start and Career Reflections

Murray also recounted an anecdote from his first day on the job, when he was invited to join Djokovic on a run. He endured calf cramps so as not to fail his fellow former world number one—a moment he labeled "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 Calendar

The conversation moved onto the current tennis calendar, a topic of debate among top players.

Murray, who was plagued by injuries in his later years, had been against increasing the number of two-week ATP 1,000 tournaments, believing 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 tired, you're more sensitive 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 truly an issue."