“Murray fit the bill perfectly” : Novak Djokovic addresses the reason he chose Andy Murray as his coach at this stage of his career
In one of the late surprises of the tennis calendar year, Novak Djokovic dropped a bombshell for the tennis world to see, as he will now join forces with long-time rival and friend Andy Murray, who will be the Serbian’s coach going into the Australian Open next year.
Although the Englishman has retired just this year only, the Serbian still believes that he can be of great value and add a different kind of experience to his team.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion was as surprised as anyone when this decision was made as well. Obviously, some can argue that after cutting ties with Goran Ivanisevic in March, the Serbian still performed immensely well as he won the coveted Olympic gold medal in Paris this year after beating one of the best players in the world in Carlos Alcaraz, that too without the advice of any coach.
Talking to the Sky Sports News about why he chose Andy Murray as coach at the age of 37, the Serbian had some great points to justify his addition to his team.
“I was going through a process of thinking about next season and trying to figure out what I need at this stage of my career. Because I stopped with my coach Goran Ivanisevic, that I was very successful with for many years, in March.”
37 years of age, completed the sport, part of the Big 3; there really is nothing much left for the Serbian to prove his status as an icon of the sport. So naturally, he does not require the services of any world class tennis coach as much as he did when he was younger. And that is why appointing Murray seems like a valid decision, because of the duo facing similar experiences throughout their careers, and the Englishman may be more than just a coach to help out the Serbian during the final stages of his career.
“So, I took about six months to really think about if I really need a coach, and if yes, who that’s going to be and the profile of the coach. We were going through different names and I realised the perfect coach for me at this point would be someone that has been through the experiences that I’m going through, possible multiple Grand Slam winner, former No 1.”
“I was thinking about different people and then an Andy Murray discussion appeared on the table with me and my team. It was still a shock decision. It caught him a little bit off guard as well because he wasn’t expecting it, so we connected really fast and he accepted after a few days.”
“I couldn’t be more excited about it. This collaboration is a surprise to me as well, to everyone. But it’s exciting for tennis. He’s been one of my greatest rivals. We’re the same age. We’ve played in all the biggest stadiums in our sport. So I can’t wait to get out on the court and prepare for next season.” Djokovic explained his actions as to why Andy Murray fit the bill perfectly.
Novak Djokovic reveals he has no intention of retiring just yet
With two-thirds of the Big 3 now retired, fans thought it would be a matter of time to see the Serbian hit the road as well, especially after winning the only accolade which has escaped his grasps throughout his career, the Olympic gold medal. But all those rumours have hit a dead end, as Djokovic stated he still plans on to continue because his body is serving him well.
“We all know that we all have to stop and say goodbye at some point to what we’ve done all of our lives, [with] Andy and Rafa [Nadal], we knew that the end was coming. But both of them saying farewell to tennis in the same year, it’s a shock for all of us. It’s a shock for the tennis world because they are legends in our sport.”
“I still will try to go strong because I feel like my body is serving me well. I still have motivation to win Grand Slams, make more history.”
Still the world no.7 and now with Andy Murray by his side, the Serbian can make more history by attempting to reach Grand Slam no. 25 next year.
“That’s one of the biggest reasons why I asked Andy to work with me. Because I still have big plans. So as long as that’s the case, I’ll keep going. I don’t have any date in my mind or any result after I achieve it potentially that I’m going to say goodbye and retire.”
“I’ll keep going as much as I feel like I can be one of the candidates for the biggest titles in sport.” the Serbian said.
It will not be that surprising to see Novak Djokovic play for another year or two, and if he is able to keep his injuries sidelined, we may well see the Serbian claim the crown of the greatest among the Big 3 by the end of his career.
