🔗 Share this article Andy Murray Concedes He Didn't Achieve the Targeted Outcomes with Djokovic Novak Djokovic secured 25 wins out of 36 meetings against his longstanding competitor Andy Murray. Andy Murray has stated that he "probably failed to achieve the results I would have wanted" during his brief tenure mentoring his past rival, Novak Djokovic. Murray, who concluded his illustrious career at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, joined Djokovic's team last November, but the collaboration concluded after only half a year. In his maiden coaching role, the 38-year-old Murray partnered with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open in 2025 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 anticipation was that it was going to be extremely challenging," Murray noted in an interview. He added, "Novak, like myself, is a demanding individual in terms of the way he tackles his tennis, [it] is incredibly rigorous." Reflecting on the Period In retrospect, Murray expressed that he is pleased he accepted the role. "It's an amazing experience that I've had," he said. During their time together, Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz to reach the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was had to pull out due to injury from his contest against Alexander Zverev. Following that, upon his comeback, Djokovic suffered early exits 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 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." A Challenging Start and Career 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 "humiliating." Reflecting on his own successful playing career, Murray reflected he "should have taken more breaks" to relish his successes, including after his two Olympic triumphs. Opinion About the Tennis Calendar The conversation turned to the modern tennis calendar, a topic of debate among top players. Murray, who was affected by injuries in his later years, had voted against 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 shows players are getting injured more than before. But I do think players are more tired and psychologically drained than they were before because they're spending more days away on the road," Murray commented. "When you're more fatigued, you're more vulnerable to pain and discomfort. My feeling 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 amount of time that players are away on the road that's actually an issue."
Novak Djokovic secured 25 wins out of 36 meetings against his longstanding competitor Andy Murray. Andy Murray has stated that he "probably failed to achieve the results I would have wanted" during his brief tenure mentoring his past rival, Novak Djokovic. Murray, who concluded his illustrious career at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, joined Djokovic's team last November, but the collaboration concluded after only half a year. In his maiden coaching role, the 38-year-old Murray partnered with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open in 2025 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 anticipation was that it was going to be extremely challenging," Murray noted in an interview. He added, "Novak, like myself, is a demanding individual in terms of the way he tackles his tennis, [it] is incredibly rigorous." Reflecting on the Period In retrospect, Murray expressed that he is pleased he accepted the role. "It's an amazing experience that I've had," he said. During their time together, Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz to reach the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was had to pull out due to injury from his contest against Alexander Zverev. Following that, upon his comeback, Djokovic suffered early exits 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 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." A Challenging Start and Career 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 "humiliating." Reflecting on his own successful playing career, Murray reflected he "should have taken more breaks" to relish his successes, including after his two Olympic triumphs. Opinion About the Tennis Calendar The conversation turned to the modern tennis calendar, a topic of debate among top players. Murray, who was affected by injuries in his later years, had voted against 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 shows players are getting injured more than before. But I do think players are more tired and psychologically drained than they were before because they're spending more days away on the road," Murray commented. "When you're more fatigued, you're more vulnerable to pain and discomfort. My feeling 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 amount of time that players are away on the road that's actually an issue."