Murray and Djokovic are both 37 years old and were born a week apart in May 1987. They have been playing against each other since juniors. As professionals, they have played 36 matches against each other.
Tennis legend Novak Djokovic said he hired his former rival Andy Murray as his coach because he knows the Briton well. Djokovic, who has been playing without a coach for the past six months, is here to play a farewell match for Argentine star Juan Martin del Potro. He and Murray announced last week that they plan to work together for the Australian Open in January.
🚨 ANDY MURRAY SERÁ EL ENTRENADOR DE NOVAK DJOKOVIC. pic.twitter.com/0oRlDmd6By
— ESPN Tenis (@ESPNtenis) November 23, 2024
“I have played a lot of tennis against him since I was a junior and there are very few players who have won multiple Grand Slam titles,” Djokovic said in Spanish at a press conference ahead of his match against del Potro. Djokovic is a 24-time Grand Slam champion. He has spent more weeks at number one than any other player in tennis history. Murray won three Grand Slam titles and two Olympic singles gold medals. He topped the ATP rankings in 2016. He retired after the Paris Olympics in August.
“In the end our friendship was more important than our rivalry” – Djokovic
Murray and Djokovic are both 37 years old and were born a week apart in May 1987. They have been playing against each other since juniors. As professional players, both of them played 36 matches against each other in which Djokovic won 25 and Murray won 11. Djokovic, who has been playing without a full-time coach since separating from Goran Ivanisevic in March, said, “He understands my game very well and the situations I have gone through. He knows what are the shortcomings in my game.”
🚨 𝗕𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚 ! ANDY MURRAY VA DEVENIR LE NOUVEAU COACH DE NOVAK DJOKOVIC. 😱pic.twitter.com/eO7LbJO3Il
— Univers Tennis 🎾 (@UniversTennis) November 23, 2024
Del Potro, the 2009 US Open champion, won the exhibition match at Parque Roca, Buenos Aires, 6-4, 7-5. “We played against each other in the most important matches of our sport, but in the end our friendship was more important than our rivalry,” Djokovic said.