Andy Murray reveals the unique asset he brings as Novak Djokovic’s coach

Ewan West 13 Feb 2025 10:27 AM

Pictured: Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic

Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic during an interview

Andy Murray has shared some intriguing insights on his role as Novak Djokovic’s coach as he revealed his key focus and also one mistake he has made.

Djokovic and Murray announced their surprise collaboration in November and worked together for the first time during the off-season.

Murray’s first tournament in Djokovic’s coaching box was last month’s Australian Open, where the Serbian reached the semi-finals.

Djokovic delivered excellent displays to defeat Tomas Machac, Jiri Lehecka and Carlos Alcaraz in Melbourne, before a hamstring injury forced him to retire in his semi-final match with Alexander Zverev.

According to The Times, the two former rivals are set to continue their partnership until at least Wimbledon, with next month’s Indian Wells Masters likely to be the next time they link up.

Speaking on the Sporting Misadventures podcast, Murray opened up on the experience of coaching Djokovic.

“It wasn’t so much ‘this is what you did wrong’, it was more like ‘this is what you do right’,” the former world No 1 explained. “(It was) ‘when I was playing against you, you were doing this, it was so hard to play against for these reasons’.

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“I was more like trying to emphasise the positives of when he’s playing well, this is what it looks like and this is what it feels like for the player down the other end.

“As a player, you never know the speed of your own shot, the speed of your ball, what impact it’s having on the guy down the other end, what are they feeling.

“If I [had been] able to hear from Novak or [Roger] Federer or [Rafael] Nadal when I was playing against them, ‘oh, I hate it when you do this to me or when you hit this shot’, that would have been a huge, huge help to me to know that.”

The three-time Grand Slam winner also admitted he “spent too much time in my room watching tennis videos, over-analysing” while highlighting the “unique perspective” he brings.

“I do think it’s a unique perspective I have on Novak’s game that I’m able to make up for some of those weaknesses and flaws that I would have (as an inexperienced coach) because I’ve competed against him in the biggest matches on the biggest stages over a 10-12 year period,” Murray added.

“I’ve studied his game a lot but also experienced what It’s like to play against him. We had those conversations. Hopefully it was beneficial for him. I know if I was a player, I would have found that helpful.”

Djokovic is set to return to action at the Qatar Open ATP 500 tournament, which begins on February 17.