Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray tied at the Australian Open

MELBOURNE, Australia — Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray have known each other for a quarter of a century. They have played since the age of 12, meeting 36 times as professionals, including 10 Grand Slam matches. Yet they’ve never been able to talk shop and freely trade all sorts of thoughts — about tennis and otherwise — until now.

Because Djokovic had the bright idea of ​​hiring the recently retired Murray as his coach, at least through the Australian Open.

“I must say, in the beginning, it was a bit of a strange feeling to be able to share insights with him, not just about the game but how I feel, about life in general. Not in a negative way, but just in a way I’ve never done it with him, because he’s always been one of my best rivals,” Djokovic said. “We always hid things from each other. Now all the cards are open on the table.

It’s an unusual pairing that took their game by surprise in November, after Djokovic called Murray to check the possibility of teaming up. The two rivals are now on the same side. Daniil Medvedev, the 2021 US Open champion, draws on soccer to try to explain how out-of-this-world this relationship is.

“Imagine,” Medvedev said, “(Lionel were) Messi to be Cristiano Ronaldo’s coach. It would be strange.”

Indeed. It must be strange to see Murray standing just a few steps away from Djokovic behind the baseline during a practice session.

After all, these are two tennis greats. Djokovic has won a men’s record 24 Grand Slam titles, including 10 at the Australian Open, and has spent more weeks ranked No. 1 than anyone in history. Murray is No. 1, owns three major singles trophies, has been Slam runner-up eight times — five of those losses in the final against Djokovic, including four at Melbourne Park — and is the only player to win two Olympic singles gold medals. tennis

“Unfortunately (in Melbourne) never got over the line. This man was solely responsible for this. So I’m here now to ruin another chance for him to win,” Murray joked.

“Novak asked me to help him; I was shocked,” said Murray, whose last match as a player came at the Paris Olympics in August. “I obviously didn’t expect it when she called.”

Both men are 37; They were born a week apart in May 1987. Djokovic leads their head-to-head series 25-11, including 8-2 in slams. But those two defeats were the two biggest victories of Murray’s career: in the final of the US Open in 2012, his first major championship, and Wimbledon in 2013, when he ended Britain’s 77-year wait for a British man to take the singles. Crowned at the All England Club.

“We thought we’d give it a go and see if I could help,” Murray said. “Novak is not only one of the greatest tennis players of all time. He is one of the greatest athletes of all time. I hope he will be a very hard worker. very hard working Always looking to improve.”

Djokovic, who has won a dozen major titles since parting ways with coach Goran Ivanisevic last March, has never hired a full-time replacement.

It is unclear whether Djokovic and Murray will stay together outside of Australia.

They spent more than a week in the offseason and less than a week working together in Melbourne.

“I was thinking about the names in my side for this season. I wanted to have someone who won multiple slams. The list is not that long. Someone who really understands what it means to win a Slam, what it means to deal with adversity, pressure, expectations,” Djokovic said.

“Andy finished his playing career only six months ago. It was a bit of a surprise for him when I called him,” Djokovic added. But I think his tennis IQ is very high. We all know that.”