Novak Djokovic’s coach Andy Murray saluted by a player who would like to work with the Scot
Novak Djokovic’s surprise move to hire Andy Murray as his coach for the Australian Open has been described as ‘very interesting’ by a former British No 2.
Djokovic admitted three-time Grand Slam champion Murray was caught off guard when asked to be his new coach, as he explained why he reached out to his old rival to join his team.
“I was going through a process of thinking about next season in the last couple of months,” Djokovic said to Sky Sports at the Qatar Grand Prix.
“I was trying to figure out what I need at this stage of my career because I stopped with my (former) coach Goran Ivanisevic, who I was very successful with and worked for many years, in March.
“So I took about six months to really think about if I need a coach and, if yes, who that’s going to be and the profile of the coach.
“We were going through names and I realised that the perfect coach for me at this point would be someone who has been through the experiences I am going through, possibly a multiple Grand Slam winner, a former (world) number one.
“I was thinking about different people and a discussion about Andy Murray appeared on the table with me and my team.
“We were like, ‘okay, I’m going to give him a call and see how it goes’. It caught him a little off guard as well because he wasn’t expecting it.
“We connected really fast and he accepted it after a few days. I can’t be more excited about it.”
Now British star Jodie Burrage has given her reaction to the story, as she told Tennis365 she would relish the chance to be coached by Murray when what is likely to be a short-term stint with Djokovic comes to an end.
“It will be very interesting to see what it is like for Andy to coach Novak,” Burrage told Tennis365 in association with her clothing partner Penguin.
“Next time I see him, I might jokingly ask if he wants to coach me, but he might be a bit too expensive for me!
“Andy has been so open and friendly to all the British players in recent years and we have all learned something from him.
“He has been such an inspiration as a player, so let’s see how he gets on as a coach.”
Burrage’s suggestion that she may seek out advice from Murray highlights her desire to get back to her best in 2025.
The 25-year-old reached a career-high No 84 in the WTA Rankings last March before injuries derailed her ambitions.
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She finished this year on a real high with some strong results on the ITF World Tennis Tour that concluded with a win in a W100 tournament in Dubai earluer this month and she is relishing a new season that will include an appearance at next month’s Australian Open.
“The biggest thing for me is I didn’t know if I was ever going to get back to where I was. I still don’t know if I can do that and you never know if that consistency will come again,” said Burrage, reflecting on her time out with injuries.
“I was at my career high when the two injuries happened and you are sat there for six months seeing the ranking you have worked all your life for just go down, down and down and you can’t do anything about it. It’s not a very nice feeling.
“The positive is this year I now have six months with no ranking points to defend so that will be a nice feeling going on court knowing it’s all gains.
“The target for next year is to stay fit, obviously and I really want to be trying to get myself back into the top 100.
“My protected ranking will get me into a few big tournaments and that will. Give me a big chance and after the last few weeks, I’ve got a lot of confidence back.
“I believe I can beat players in the top 100 and around 150 again now and I feel like I deserve to be there again now.”
