Judy Murray has given her stamp of approval to her son Andy Murray’s collaboration with Novak Djokovic. The former captain of Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup team humorously noted that the Serbian star has gained a new fan.
Djokovic, now a 24-time Grand Slam champion, was one of Murray’s fiercest rivals on the Tour for years. However, just three months after the 37-year-old retired, the current world No. 7 reached out to him with a coaching offer, believing he could provide valuable insights.
The tennis world was both surprised and thrilled when Murray and Djokovic jointly announced their partnership on November 23rd.
“I’m going to be joining Novak’s team in the off season, helping him to prepare for the Australian Open. 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,” Murray said at the time.
The former two-time Wimbledon champion and Djokovic share a long history as rivals— with the Serbian star winning 25 of their 36 encounters. However, that hasn’t stopped the British tennis legend’s mother from cheering for the Paris Olympics gold medalist.
“I’ve got to support Novak now. That’ll be a first. I mean that in the nicest way, of course,” Judy Murray told The Herald.
When news of the partnership broke, most people were excited and believed there were reasonable explanations for why Djokovic chose to work with Murray. However, some critics dismissed the move, labeling it as purely for entertainment.
Since then, the Serbian tennis star has personally refuted those claims.
Meanwhile, the Briton’s mother recognizes that while they are very different individuals, they share a deep understanding of each other.
“Well, they’re different characters. The first time I saw Novak was when they were playing in an under-12 competition in France. So, they’re part of each other’s furniture and they know each other really well on and off the court,” Judy added.
Djokovic had a good reason why he wanted Murray to be his coach
Following a challenging start to 2024 and the emergence of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the 24-time Grand Slam champion acknowledged that his partnership with Goran Ivanisevic had reached its limit. In April, he announced the end of their six-year collaboration.
Rather than immediately seeking a replacement, Djokovic opted for interim support, receiving guidance from Nenad Zimonjic and collaborating with others from the Serbian Tennis Federation.
As the 2024 season concluded and the 37-year-old began planning for 2025, he decided it was time to hire a new full-time coach. He specifically sought someone who understood him deeply and had faced similar challenges.
“I was going through a process of thinking about next season in the past couple of months and figuring out what I needed as I stopped with my coach Goran Ivanisevic, who I was successful with. I took about six months to think if I really needed a coach and if yes, who is that going to be and the profile of the coach,” Djokovic told Sky Sports.
“We were going through different names and I realized at this point the perfect coach would be someone who has been through the experiences I have been through. A multiple Grand Slam winner and I was thinking about a few and the Andy Murray discussion appeared on the table with my team. I decided I would give him a call and see how it goes. It caught him off guard a little bit as he wasn’t expecting it.
“We connected really fast and he accepted it after a few days. I can’t be more excited about it. This collaboration is a surprise to me as well, to everyone, but it is exciting for tennis. He has been one of my greatest rivals, we are at the same age. We played in all the biggest stages in our sport so I can’t wait to be out there next season.”
Djokovic’s remarks debunked claims that he brought Murray on board merely to attract attention or generate headlines.
Last week, the Brisbane International announced that the former world No. 1 would be part of their tournament lineup in the opening week of 2025. However, British media reports suggest that his new coach is unlikely to accompany him there.
Instead, the Djokovic-Murray partnership is expected to officially begin at the Australian Open.
