Novak Djokovic revealed on Saturday that his longtime rival, Andy Murray, will join his coaching team for the 2024 season, beginning at the Australian Open in January.
“I’m thrilled to have one of my biggest rivals on the same side of the net with me, this time as my coach,” Djokovic said in a statement. “I look forward to starting the season with Andy and having him by my side in Melbourne, where we’ve shared many exceptional moments throughout our careers.”
Murray, a three-time Grand Slam champion who retired from competitive tennis after the Tokyo Olympics in August, expressed his excitement at the new role. “I am very excited about this and look forward to being on the same side of the net for a change,” Murray said. “I’m also grateful for the opportunity to help him achieve his goals for the upcoming year.”
To mark the announcement, Djokovic posted a playful video on X, showing clips of him and Murray from their playing days, captioned: “He never liked retirement anyway.”
Djokovic, 37, has won the Australian Open a record 10 times and has defeated Murray in four Melbourne finals. However, the Serb had a challenging 2024 season, failing to win a Grand Slam and slipping to No. 7 in the world. Despite this, Djokovic secured the Olympic singles title in Paris, which he described as his “greatest achievement.”
At the 2024 Australian Open, Djokovic reached the semi-finals, losing to Jannik Sinner, who finished the year as world No. 1. Djokovic also suffered a straight-sets defeat to Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final.
Djokovic is currently tied with Margaret Court for the most major singles titles (24) and is determined to surpass her in Melbourne next month. Over the course of their careers, Djokovic and Murray met 36 times, with the Serb winning 25 of those encounters. Nineteen of those matchups were finals, including seven Grand Slam meetings.
Murray’s two most significant victories over Djokovic came in Grand Slam finals. In 2012, he won his first major title at the US Open, defeating Djokovic in five sets, and in 2013, he became the first British man in 77 years to win Wimbledon by beating Djokovic in straight sets in the final.
“We’ve played each other since we were boys — 25 years of being rivals, pushing each other beyond our limits,” Djokovic said. “We had some of the most epic battles in our sport. They called us game-changers, risk-takers, history-makers. I thought our story may be over. Turns out, it has one final chapter. It’s time for one of my toughest opponents to step into my corner.”
In March 2024, Djokovic ended his long-standing coaching partnership with Goran Ivanišević, despite the pair winning 12 Grand Slam titles together. Ivanišević, who had spoken candidly about Djokovic’s intense drive, once said, “Especially when something’s not going his way, sometimes it’s very complicated.”
AFP
