Murray Admits He Didn't Achieve the Targeted Outcomes with Djokovic

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

Murray, who finalized his professional career at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024, entered Djokovic's team last November, but the arrangement concluded after only half a year.

In his maiden 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.

"It's a job 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 noted in an interview.

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

Looking Back at the Period

Upon reflection, Murray expressed that he is happy 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 make the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was forced to retire due to injury from his contest against Alexander Zverev.

Afterwards, upon his comeback, 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 ridiculous tennis in that tournament," Murray said.

"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 disappointed. Probably didn't get the results I would have liked for him. But I gained valuable insight about what coaching involves."

A Demanding Start and Playing Reflections

Murray also shared an incident from his first day on the job, when he was invited to join Djokovic on a run. He experienced 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 said he "should have taken more breaks" to enjoy his successes, including after his two Olympic victories.

Views on the Tennis Calendar

The conversation shifted to the current tennis calendar, a topic of debate among top players.

Murray, who was plagued by injuries in his latter career, had been against increasing the number of two-week ATP 1,000 tournaments, believing 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 weary and psychologically drained than they were before because they're spending more days away on the road," Murray stated.

"When you're more exhausted, 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 volume of time that players are away on the road that's genuinely an issue."