- Andy Murray will be trying to help Novak Djokovic win his 25th grand slam
- He’s explained how he will react if Djokovic vents his frustration during matches
Andy Murray has granted Novak Djokovic full licence to rage at him during matches, insisting he is ‘absolutely here’ for copping an earful in the stands.
Of course, the Scot would have been the worst of hypocrites to say anything otherwise, after 20 years of chuntering and raging towards his coaching box.
Djokovic is not shy of expressing himself on court, either, and the tennis world is febrile with excitement to see how these two old rivals will interact.
‘Of course I’ve thought about it,’ said Murray at Melbourne Park’s practice courts on Thursday. ‘I would think I’d be one of the people that would understand that side of things.
‘I know it’s not easy out there. It’s stressful and at times he’s going to vent towards his team and his box. Providing he’s giving his best effort and trying as hard as he can, I’m absolutely fine with him expressing himself how he wants.’
Murray’s own frank exchanges of views with his team were less about finding someone to blame than a way to gee himself up and he believes Djokovic is cut from the same cloth.
Andy Murray (right) will be coaching his long-term rival Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open
The Scot has revealed he will have no problem if Djokovic shouts at him during matches
‘In many ways we are quite similar characters so I would hope I would empathise with him on the court,’ he said.
‘You have to be very careful with emotional players, stopping them from feeling like they’re able to (vent) if they need to: sometimes suppressing everything is not the right way – the description often of how players look in those moments is that they look very flat and that’s not what you want.
‘So there’s a balance too and like I said, as long as he’s giving his best effort and trying his hardest, I’m absolutely here for all of that.’
Murray is clearly relishing his new role but the quest to win a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam is a serious business.
‘At times it’s very enjoyable,’ he said. ‘But high performance is not supposed to be laughs and jokes and messing around. In all the time I’ve been on tour, I haven’t seen that from any of the best players in the world. I’ve seen it from some of the lower ranked players and that’s one of the reasons why they’re not there. The best players take it seriously.
‘(Coaching) is not always easy. It’s demanding but it’s extremely rewarding when you make a breakthrough in a practice and something starts to feel a little bit better.’
So have he and Djokovic made a ‘breakthrough’? ‘I think so but he may say otherwise!’
Much has been said by various commentators about what Murray brings to the table as a coach but it felt instructive to ask the man himself.
‘I would hope I have a decent knowledge of the players and an understanding of what the game is like right now,’ he said. ‘One of the positives about coming straight off the tour is I played against a lot of these guys. I know what the speed of their serve is like, what the topspin on their shots is like and have a decent understanding of their strengths and weaknesses.
Murray believes he is already communicating well with Djokovic as the Serbian superstar aims to win a 25th grand slam in Melbourne
‘I think lots of people who watched me play, they would say the understanding of the game and the strategy and the tactical side of things was a strength of mine. Hopefully, as a coach, I’m able to see the game through Novak’s eyes and help him with the right strategy on the court.’
There is, of course, a large element of ‘if it ain’t broke’ about coaching the best player of all time. Djokovic may be in a relative trough in his career – he made not a single final on the tour last year – but Murray will not be ripping it all up and starting again.
‘Because of the situation and how unusual it is, a lot of the talk is about my relationship with Novak but there’s a big team around him. They have just as important a role as I do and have worked with him for an unbelievably long time. The last thing I want to do is come in and change everything and say ‘You’re doing this wrong, you’re doing that wrong’. It’s about making small changes.
‘I want to help Novak win and I’m working as hard as I can to do that with him and his team.’
