Andy Murray to Coach Novak Djokovic at 2025 Australian Open

Andy Murray is set to coach his long-standing former competitor, Novak Djokovic, at the Australian Open in 2025. This development occurs as Novak Djokovic (left) remains the sole active member of the ‘Big Four’ players, following the retirements of Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal this year. Murray, a 37-year-old British three-time Grand Slam champion, concluded his 19-year professional tennis career in August. The former world number one, Murray, expressed that he was “looking forward to spending time on the same side of the net as Novak for a change”. Their collaboration will commence during the off-season and continue through the preparations for the Australian Open, scheduled from 12-26 January. This engagement marks Murray’s inaugural coaching position subsequent to his retirement from playing professionally. Djokovic, who holds 24 Grand Slam titles, has secured victory at the Australian Open a record 10 times, notably defeating Murray in four finals held in Melbourne. The 37-year-old Serbian player shared a video on X featuring clips of the two athletes, humorously captioned: “He never liked retirement anyway.” Djokovic stated: “We played each other since we were boys, 25 years of being rivals, of pushing each other beyond our limits.” He continued: “We had some of the most epic battles in our sport. I thought our story may be over – turns out it has one final chapter.” Djokovic concluded: “It’s time for one of my toughest opponents to step into my corner.” Djokovic currently shares the record with Margaret Court for the highest number of major singles titles achieved by any player. While it would be a fitting achievement for him to surpass the Australian legend in Melbourne, a venue where he has historically experienced considerable success, his 2024 season was challenging when measured against his usual high performance levels. For the first time since 2017, Djokovic failed to secure a major title, having been defeated by world number one Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open semi-finals and subsequently by Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final. Nevertheless, he did achieve a long-anticipated Olympic gold medal in Paris, an accomplishment he characterized as his “greatest achievement”. Murray and Djokovic have sustained a strong friendship throughout their professional careers, having been born only weeks apart and developing as junior rivals. Novak Djokovic (right) participated in a ceremony honoring Andy Murray at this year’s Wimbledon. Djokovic holds a 25-11 lead in their head-to-head encounters, though Murray secured notable wins against him to claim the US Open in 2012 and Wimbledon a year later. Conversely, Murray was defeated by Djokovic in the Melbourne final in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2016, in addition to losing the French Open final in 2016. Murray ascended to the world number one ranking, displacing Djokovic, at the close of the 2016 season, concluding the year with a 24-match winning streak; however, a hip injury sustained a year later would ultimately affect his career trajectory. Murray had previously declared that the Paris Olympics would be his final tournament, where he reached the quarter-finals of the men’s doubles event alongside Dan Evans before his exit. Murray stated: “I’m going to be joining Novak’s team in the off-season, helping him to prepare for the Australian Open.” He added: “I’m really excited for it and looking forward to spending time on the same side of the net as Novak for a change, helping him to achieve his goals.” This year, Djokovic implemented changes to his support team, which included the departure of his long-serving coach, Goran Ivanisevic. The Olympic medal represented his sole title victory in 2024, and he concluded his season prematurely after sustaining an unspecified injury. This marks the first season since 2005 where he has not won an ATP event, and only the fourth since 2008 in which he has failed to win one of the four Grand Slam titles. Djokovic further commented: “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.”