Murray: Coaching Djokovic 'more demanding than I expected'

Andy Murray acknowledges he is more demanding of Novak Djokovic than he expected to be as a coach.

The pair teamed up in November in an agreement until the end of the Australian Open.

Their first major campaign together begins on Monday when Djokovic's latest quest for a record-breaking 25th grand slam crown starts against Nishesh Basavareddy.

Into their third month as a partnership, Murray says it has been an eye-opening experience.

"He's been unbelievably open, and the communication when we've been on court with each other and away from the court has been really, really good," he said of Djokovic.

"I think the first couple of days, it was a bit strange, and it was a bit different. But both of us have been trying to encourage that communication, and try and build that trust.

"It's obviously been fascinating and interesting. There are some things that have been surprising, but I expected him to be an extremely hard worker, very intense and always keen to learn, questioning lots of things, and wanting to get better.

"I've found at times coaching maybe a little bit more demanding than I expected.

"I think when you're a player, you just see what you do on the court, and you're not involved in all the conversations with your team that go into each day, about how you're feeling, or what it is that you're going to work on, and the strategy and preparations for matches.

"But, obviously, as a coach and a team member, the days look a bit different. And, yes, it's pretty demanding."

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Djokovic endured a fairly modest 2024 season by his standards, failing to win a slam for the first time in seven years, though he did claim a long-awaited Olympic gold medal in Paris.

And Murray is confident more major silverware will follow for the Serb, who he thinks can establish himself as the best athlete of all time.

"When he was fully motivated and fully focused, he won the Olympics, which is an incredible achievement," the three-time major winner added.

"I think it was only natural after that for there to be a bit of a let-down, because he'd set himself really one target and one goal for the year, and he did that.

"He achieved the last thing that he felt like he needed to at the Olympics. So for me and his team, it's about trying to find that motivation to keep going and pushing for more.

"Novak has in the last few years cemented himself as the best tennis player of all time, certainly of his generation, with the records that he's achieved.

"These next couple of years, I think he maybe already has a legitimate claim to be the best athlete of all time.

"But I think, if he can go out as a 38, 39-year-old and win more slams and beat [Carlos] Alcaraz and [Jannik] Sinner in big matches, he's got a claim to be the best athlete of all time, and I think that's exciting for me and his team to be part of that."