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

Andy Murray has revealed that he "probably failed to achieve the results I would have liked" during his brief tenure guiding his past rival, Novak Djokovic.

Murray, who ended his playing career at the 2024 Paris Olympics, joined Djokovic's staff last November, but the collaboration 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 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 extremely challenging," Murray remarked in an interview.

He added, "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

Upon reflection, Murray stated that he is happy he accepted the role. "It's an unforgettable experience that I've had," he commented.

During their time together, Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz to advance to the semi-finals in Melbourne, but was had to pull out injured from his clash against Alexander Zverev.

Afterwards, upon his comeback, Djokovic experienced first-round losses in Qatar and at Indian Wells, before losing the Miami Open final to Czech teenager Jakub Mensik.

"It was unfortunate 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 disappointed. Probably didn't get the results I would have liked for him. But I learned a lot about what coaching entails."

A Demanding Start and Playing 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 disappoint his fellow former world number one—a moment he labeled "awkward."

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

Perspective Regarding the Tennis Calendar

The conversation turned to the modern tennis calendar, a topic of discussion 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 suggests 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 sensitive 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 grueling 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."