Murray Admits He Didn't Achieve the Wanted Results for Djokovic

Andy Murray has commented that he "probably failed to achieve the results I would have wanted" during his short-lived tenure coaching his former rival, Novak Djokovic.

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

In his debut coaching role, the 38-year-old Murray teamed up with the 24-time Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open in 2025 and several additional 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 exceptionally tough," Murray noted in an interview.

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

Reflecting on the Stint

In retrospect, Murray expressed that he is pleased he undertook the role. "It's an amazing experience that I've had," he commented.

During their time together, Djokovic defeated Carlos Alcaraz to advance to the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was compelled to withdraw injured from his clash against Alexander Zverev.

Subsequently, upon his return, Djokovic experienced 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 extraordinary tennis in that tournament," Murray recalled.

"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 let down. Probably didn't get the results I would have liked for him. But I came away wiser about what coaching involves."

A Challenging 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 endured calf cramps so as not to fail his fellow former world number one—a moment he labeled "awkward."

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

Opinion About the Tennis Schedule

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

Murray, who was hindered by injuries in his latter career, had been against increasing the number of two-week ATP 1,000 tournaments, saying the increased time on the road would negatively impact players.

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

"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 demanding 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."