Novak Djokovic has decided to move forward this season even without a coach for now, following the end of his partnership with former rival Andy Murray.
The two ended their coaching partnership last week after only six months. Regardless of this news, Djokovic now continues to prepare for the upcoming French Open, where he aims to make history by winning his 25th Grand Slam title —a number more than any other player in the sport’s history.
“At the moment, I’m not in need of a coach. I don’t need to rush in any context. I feel comfortable with the people around me… In the next few tournaments, we’ll see what happens,” Djokovic said.
The 38-year-old athlete has yet to win a match on the clay surface, having been defeated in straight sets at both the Monte Carlo Masters and Madrid Open. Moreover, his current playing form raises questions about whether he is ready for Roland Garros.
In a social media post, Djokovic shared his journey at the Geneva Open, with a caption, “Geneva, I missed you. 🇨🇭”
Support from fans flooded the post’s comment section. “So good to see you back – and that smile says it all!” one fan remarked, while another one wrote, “So nice to see him happy. Let’s go champion 🏆 😍 (translated)”
Djokovic and Murray’s partnership
Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray have been fierce rivals on the tennis court for many years. Given this, it was big news when they revealed that Murray would be joining Djokovic’s coaching team.
Their partnership started off strong, with Djokovic having impressive results early in the season. The athlete made it to the semifinals of the Australian Open in January. However, Djokovic’s good start was halted when he was forced to retire in a match against Alexander Zverev.
Djokovic’s best performance this year was during the Miami Open, where he reached the finals but was defeated by Jakub Mensík.
Despite their short partnership, Djokovic praised Murray and said that working closely with him gave him a deeper appreciation of who he really is, not just as a player but as a person.
Djokovic admitted, “We felt like we couldn’t get more out of that partnership on the court, and that’s all there is to it… My respect towards Andy remains the same, even more actually, I got to know him as a person.”
To read more about Djokovic and Murray’s partnership, read here.