Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic claims labelled ‘bulls***’ by Brit’s former coach
Andy Murray’s decision to become Novak Djokovic’s coach rocked the tennis world. The Brit only retired four months ago and is now stepping up to mentor arguably his biggest rival.
Even one of Murray’s ex-coaches, Mark Petchey, was “surprised” by the news.
Djokovic had been without a coach since he parted ways with Goran Ivanisevic in March, ending their five-year partnership. He worked with some temporary mentors during the clay season but largely travelled with his hitting partner, Carlos Gomez-Herrera.
At the end of November, the 24-time Grand Slam champion finally found a new voice to add to his camp, asking his former rival Murray to coach him during the off-season and into the Australian Open.
It’s an unprecedented move – the pair have battled on the sport’s biggest stages, playing for Major titles and the No. 1 ranking. They are the same age and have been facing off since their junior days.
But they will now be in the same corner for the first time. Djokovic’s decision to hire Murray caused a stir, with some questioning whether it was a last-ditch move to have some fun with a friend as he nears retirement.
However, Petchey – who coached Murray earlier in his career – has now rubbished the retirement talk and claimed the Brit wouldn’t work with Djokovic if he wasn’t aiming high.
