Andy Murray Admits He Didn't Achieve the Wanted Results with Djokovic

Andy Murray has revealed that he "probably failed to achieve the results I would have hoped for" during his six-month tenure mentoring his one-time rival, Novak Djokovic.

Murray, who finalized his illustrious career at the 2024 Paris Olympics, became part of Djokovic's staff last November, but the collaboration dissolved after only half a year.

In his maiden position as a coach, the 38-year-old Murray partnered 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 assumption was that it was going to be extremely challenging," 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."

Looking Back at the Period

In retrospect, Murray expressed that he is glad he undertook the role. "It's an incredible experience that I've had," he observed.

During their time together, Djokovic overcame Carlos Alcaraz to advance to 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 a shame what happened in Australia with the injury, but I watched him play ridiculous tennis in that tournament," Murray said.

"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 disheartened. Probably didn't get the results I would have liked for him. But I came away wiser 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 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 "humiliating."

Reflecting on his own remarkable playing career, Murray reflected he "should have taken more breaks" to savour his successes, including after his two Olympic triumphs.

Views on the Tennis Schedule

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

Murray, who was affected by injuries in his latter career, had voted against increasing the number of two-week ATP 1,000 tournaments, saying the increased time on the road would be detrimental to players.

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

"When you're more tired, you're more sensitive to pain and discomfort. My view is that's what players are experiencing 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 volume of time that players are away on the road that's actually an issue."