Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, made the surprising choice to bring Murray on board as his coach in November, shortly after the Scot announced his retirement from professional tennis.
In his initial remarks since this development, Murray, who has been acquainted with Djokovic since their junior days, noted that the decision took him by surprise.
“I said to him: ‘Look, I need to think about it and talk to my family,'” the BBC quoted Murray as saying.
“So I spoke to them and after a couple of days I thought that it was a pretty unique opportunity and experience.
“I thought it would be a good idea to try it.”
Murray is a three-time major champion and has reached the finals in Australia five times. He is part of the "Big Four" alongside Rafael Nadal, who retired last year, and Roger Federer, who exited the sport in 2022.
Djokovic and Murray have a documented 36-match career head-to-head record, with Djokovic holding a 25-11 advantage.
Nineteen of these encounters were finals, and both players are known for exhibiting visible frustration towards their coaching staff under pressure.
In this instance, Murray may be the one experiencing this pressure.
“I know it’s not easy out there — it’s stressful and at times he’s going to want to vent towards his team and his box,” said Murray.
“Providing that he’s giving his best effort and trying as hard as he can, I’m absolutely fine with him expressing himself how he wants.”
Novel viewpoint
Djokovic stated that Mr. Murray served as an inspiration, and he expressed satisfaction with their collaborative efforts.
“I think that his unique perspective on my game is the fact that he has played me for 25 years,” the Serbian star said on Friday.
“He knows the evolution of my game, I guess the weaknesses and strengths of my game.
“He also knows the game, the tennis game, of the biggest players in the world right now because he has just recently retired as a player.
“I’m excited to start the tournament with him,” he added.
Aiming for his 11th Australian Open championship and a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title, Djokovic’s presence underscores Murray’s serious competitive intent.
“At times it’s very enjoyable. But high performance is not supposed to be laughs and jokes and messing around,” he said.
“In all the times 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.”