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

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

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

In his first-ever coaching role, the 38-year-old Murray worked with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the 2025 Australian Open 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 expectation was that it was going to be extremely challenging," Murray remarked in an interview.

He went on to say, "Novak, like myself, is a demanding individual in terms of the way he approaches his tennis, [it] is incredibly rigorous."

Looking Back at the Period

Looking back, Murray conveyed that he is glad 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 forced to retire injured from his contest against Alexander Zverev.

Following that, upon his return, 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 ridiculous tennis in that tournament," Murray noted.

"After the injury, it was undoubtedly 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 learned a lot about what coaching is."

An Intimidating Start and Career Reflections

Murray also recounted an incident from his first day on the job, when he was asked to join Djokovic on a run. He experienced calf cramps so as not to let down his fellow former world number one—a moment he labeled "awkward."

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

Perspective Regarding the Tennis Tour

The conversation turned to 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, arguing the increased time on the road would be detrimental to 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 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 susceptible to pain and discomfort. My belief 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 genuinely an issue."