Why Andy Murray walked away from retirement to face Novak Djokovic’s tantrums

Andy Murray was on the golf course, again, content with his life away from tennis and telling his playing partner that he couldn’t think of “anything worse” than returning to the sport as a coach.

Then, within half an hour, Novak Djokovic was on the phone with an offer: Murray’s long-time rival, and the winner of 24 grand slam titles, was asking him for help, presenting the “unique opportunity” of joining his team for the Australian Open. Murray was shocked, but interested. Within weeks of retiring at the Olympics, the pull of the game was too strong to resist.

With it, Murray and Djokovic’s reunion on the same side of the net has become the box-office draw ahead of the opening grand slam of the year. A combination that at first felt like an April Fool’s joke has become clearer as the Australian Open arrives.

Djokovic has described Murray’s approach to coaching as “meticulous” and “dedicated” and it was all smiles as the former World No 1 led a practice session against young rival Carlos Alcaraz at Melbourne Park this week. According to onlookers, Djokovic and Murray were in constant discussion: the goal of Djokovic lifting a record-extending 11th Australian Open and 25th grand slam by the end of the month is the complete focus of both sides of the partnership.

But, as Murray knows, such pursuits test the limits of physical and emotional endurance, especially at the age of 37. Djokovic’s former coach, the former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic, went through the highs and lows of sitting in the Serbian’s box and being on the receiving end of his frustrations. “He’s not an easy guy, let’s put it this way,” he said after Djokovic won the French Open in 2023. “Especially when something’s not going his way. He keeps you stressed, the stress level is always high. It never goes down.”