Andy Murray to not return to coaching anytime soon, says it was a ‘brilliant opportunity’ with Djokovic

INTERNATIONAL: Tennis legend Andy Murray expressed that he will not be returning to coaching anytime soon. The former athlete’s six-month partnership with former rival Novak Djokovic ended just before the French Open started, and now he is taking a break from it. 

Murray had this coaching opportunity just over three months after retiring from the 2024 Paris Olympics. Speaking at the Queen’s Club Championships—the event where the “Andy Murray Arena” was unveiled— he admitted that he was not expecting to be a coach so soon. 

Murray admitted: “I would do it again at some stage… I don’t think that will happen immediately.”

He added, “I wasn’t planning on going into coaching as soon as I finished playing, but it was a pretty unique opportunity. It was a chance to learn from one of the best athletes of all time. You also learn a lot about how to work with a team… As an individual athlete, you have a team of people around you, but you’re the focal point, whereas when you’re coaching an individual, you’re working with a physio, physical trainers, agents, and you need to know how to get your message across to the player and find out what makes them tick.” 

“That was the thing I learned and something I need to work on if I want to do it again in the future.” 

Highlights of Murray and Djokovic’s partnership

Murray joined Djokovic’s team for his run at the 2025 Australian Open semi-finals back in January. Throughout their collaboration, Djokovic won his first title of the 2025 season and his 100th career title when he defeated Hubert Hurkacz at the ATP 250 Geneva Open. 

With this experience, Murray said: “It was a brilliant opportunity for me. We got to spend some really nice moments away from the court. Results weren’t as we wanted, but we gave it a go… We’ll see about coaching in the future, but I don’t think that will happen for a while.” 

Recently, Murray praised Sinner and Alcaraz and described them as “brilliant athletes” after their impressive match at the French Open. The legend also added that he believes tennis is now heading in an exciting direction, but noted that it is essential never to forget the legacy of the Big Three—Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic—and what they have done for tennis’ history. 

In a social media post, Murray shared a photo with Alcaraz, captioning it: “Managed to grab a photo with my favourite athlete ❤️.”

Netizens commented on the post and remarked: “Such talent and genuinely nice people”, and “Legend with legend in the making. 🫡”