The Djokovic–Murray partnership failed to serve an ace on the court — so what’s next?

Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray sent shockwaves through the tennis world when news broke that Djokovic had brought Murray into his coaching setup for an indefinite period.

The announcement was really intriguing—two long-time rivals, who had battled fiercely across Grand Slam finals in one of the defining rivalries of the past two decades, were joining forces. For many, it seemed like an odd pairing. Djokovic, regarded as one of the sport’s greatest-ever players, had enjoyed far more success than Murray, whose career had been hampered by injuries despite his undeniable talent.

The decision raised both eyebrows and questions. What could Murray offer Djokovic at this stage of the Serb’s career?

However, the partnership got off to a promising start as Djokovic reached the 2025 Australian Open semi-finals, even beating one of the contenders—Carlos Alcaraz. Nothing came of it, though, as his run ended in an unfortunate manner. He had sustained an injury in the quarter-finals, which only worsened. He tried to fight through the pain but had to retire after losing the first set of his semi-final match against Alexander Zverev.

Next came the ATP tournaments, where Djokovic had been underwhelming last season. At the Qatar Open, he lost in the second round to Matteo Berrettini in straight sets. At Indian Wells, he was knocked out in the first round by Botic van de Zandschulp in three sets. And while he showed massive improvements at the Miami Open by reaching the final, he fell short and lost to young Yakub Menšík in straight sets.

The hard-court season was followed by the clay-court swing. At the Monte-Carlo Masters, Djokovic lost in the second round to Alejandro Tabilo in straight sets. He was then knocked out in the first round of the Madrid Open by Matteo Arnaldi in straight sets. He chose to skip the Rome Open and is set to compete directly in the French Open.

Looking at these results, aside from the Australian Open and the Miami Open, Djokovic’s performances have been worrying, to say the least. While it’s understandable that age is catching up with him, it’s his inability to beat the much lower-ranked players that points to a significant decline not just in his game, but also in his toughness and resilience. The partnership with Murray was forged to receive tactical assistance and a fresh perspective on how to counter younger, more athletic opponents. However, Murray has not been able to crack the code, as is evident from Djokovic’s recent performances. There has hardly been any change in his results from last season, where Djokovic failed to win a single Grand Slam or an ATP Masters 1000 tournament—a rare occurrence in the past decade.

This particular partnership grabbed more eyeballs in the tennis world than the impact it went on to have. Ultimately, Djokovic has decided to move on, and what seemed like an iconic pairing has fizzled out in a matter of six months.

In my opinion, the pairing never made sense from the beginning. Even though Murray was a great player in his heyday, his coaching experience is very limited. To coach an opponent—one who has arguably been the most successful player in tennis—was always going to be a challenge with massive expectations.

Additionally, both Djokovic and Murray are similar in terms of temperament on the court. It never bodes well to have two similar personalities working together. Instead, it’s preferable to have slightly opposing personalities to find the right balance.

With Djokovic on the cusp of history—just one Grand Slam title away from surpassing Margaret Court’s all-time record—the focus must now shift to securing an experienced, results-driven coach.

The recent experiment with Murray has not delivered the desired outcomes. To make that final push and etch his name unchallenged in tennis history, Djokovic needs a coach with a proven track record at the top level—someone who understands what it takes to win Grand Slams and can bring out the best in a champion striving to reach the ultimate pinnacle of the sport.

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