Novak Djokovic’s Surprising Alliance With Andy Murray Draws Stern Rebuke From Spanish Ex-pro Aimed at Top Rivals
Novak Djokovic’s Surprising Alliance With Andy Murray Draws Stern Rebuke From Spanish Ex-pro Aimed at Top Rivals
By
Vatsal Shah
Nov 27, 2024 | 7:22 PM WAST
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In sports, situations can change very quickly. A losing situation can turn into a winning one and even rivals can turn friends. A similar incident occurred recently after Novak Djokovic made a huge announcement. The Serb appointed his rival Andy Murray as his coach for the off-season and the Australian Open. The decision came as a surprise to many, especially since Murray had just announced his retirement months ago. However, former Spanish pro-Alex Corretja feels that the decision may come as a huge boost to Djokovic.
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The 24-time Grand Slam champion hasn’t had the best of seasons this year. Although he won the Olympic gold medal, Djokovic failed to win any major title in 2024. The wait for the 25th Grand Slam title still continues for the Serb maestro. Nonetheless, with Murray in his team now, Djokovic’s rivals need to be cautious, feels Corretja.
During an interview with Eurosport, he said, “I felt like Novak needs big and huge motivations, and he wants to bring someone special, someone that understands the game very well, which he’s been playing for the last 15-20 years on Tour, and he just retired. He might help him to try things that maybe he’s shown in Andy that he didn’t have those skills.”
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Further, he added, “He wants to play the way he wants to play during matches as well. So I think it’s an explosive combination, but it could work very well. So I think he could … maybe bring something to surprise the opponents. I think Novak needs to start doing things a bit differently. He’s been very solid and very consistent, but at the same time, I think he will try to be maybe more aggressive and, you know, play even less.”
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Who has Novak Djokovic appointed as his coach for the off-season and the Australian Open?
Rafael Nadal
Andy Murray
Roger Federer
Stan Wawrinka
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via Reuters
Interestingly, according to Andy Roddick, Murray had the choice to pick from a host of top ATP and WTA stars to coach next season. However, he chose Novak Djokovic and is set to be his coach for a brief period before he takes any other full-time role. “I’ve heard that top players, male and female, Andy Murray has said no to many over these last four months… And the other people there were asking were on the top of the pile too. They were high, high, high-ranked men and women,” Roddick revealed on his podcast.
Not everyone is sure if Murray will bring any significant value to Djokovic, given the Serb’s stature as a player. However, Andy Roddick feels Murray will be a vital cog in Djokovic’s team.
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Andy Roddick on Murray’s new role: ‘Novak Djokovic doesn’t need a babysitter’
What’s your perspective on:
Will Andy Murray’s coaching be the secret weapon Djokovic needs to clinch his 25th Grand Slam?
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Murray and Djokovic had an intriguing rivalry and the two faced each other 36 times on the ATP Tour. While Murray won 11 of those encounters, Djokovic dominated in 25 matches. Nonetheless, the two are set to keep their rivalry aside when they start working together. According to Andy Roddick, Murray has an important role to play in Djokovic’s success next season.
Talking about it, Roddick mentioned, “Novak doesn’t need a babysitter. He doesn’t need someone to teach him professionalism. He doesn’t need someone to teach him how to hit a forehand or a backhand. He needs a strategist, an IQ mind that he can bounce ideas off of and work on very specific things for very specific matchups. He needs someone who understands if he gets through a five-setter in the round of 16 of Australia. The guy’s a robotic cyborg genius. Like there’s no fix.”
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Djokovic is set to participate in a few warm-up tournaments before the actual action begins at the Australian Open. Can the Serb add another Grand Slam title to his tally and make it the silver jubilee of major wins? Let us know your views in the comments below.
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Will Andy Murray’s coaching be the secret weapon Djokovic needs to clinch his 25th Grand Slam?
Written by
Vatsal Shah
2,898
Articles
Rallying Tennis Tales
Vatsal Shah, a Tennis Writer at EssentiallySports, combines sports management insight with two years of rich content creation experience. His journey at ES involves delving into the core of tennis, covering ATP/WTA tours, and contributing 2000+ articles. Notably, one of his pieces on Venus Williams garnered over 400k views.
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Edited by
Abhishek Rajan
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