Novak Djokovic aims to keep former rival Andy Murray in his coaching team for at least the next two Grand Slams if all goes to plan.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion credits Murray for helping him produce the best tennis he has played ‘in some time’ at the Australian Open earlier this year. Djokovic reached the semi-finals in Melbourne Park before retiring from his match against Alexander Zverev due to injury. Since then, he has only played in one other tournament, which was at the Qatar Open where he lost his opening match to Matteo Berrettini.
“I think we had a great tournament, great run in Australia. I like the way I played, to be honest,” Djokovic said during a press conference in Indian Wells. “It was unfortunate to finish the tournament the way I did it, but it was an injury issue.
“But in terms of the game, I think I played, yeah, maybe the best tennis that I played in quite some time. Since the Olympics, actually. So I definitely attribute that to the work I had with Andy.”
Looking to regain his momentum, Djokovic is targeting a deep run in Indian Wells. An event he has won five times so far in his career. Murray will also be at the Masters 1000 tournament with him after the two reached an agreement for the coming weeks. Djokovic is bidding to win his 100th ATP title, which is a milestone that has only been achieved by Jimmy Connors and Roger Federer in the history of men’s tennis.
“I was very glad when he decided to keep going, Indian Wells, Miami, and yeah, most of the clay court season,” Djokovic said of Murray. “We’re going to speak after Miami, obviously, but I think the plan is to go all the way till the end of Roland Garros, I think, and yeah, hopefully Wimbledon, as well.
“You know, I’m enjoying the relationship with Andy. I still feel like we are going through the process of getting to know each other on the court in a different way than we have known each other for 25 years. So it’s obviously a new role for him.
“You know, he’s also exploring it and trying to, you know, understand how he can excel in it. I’m trying to communicate as much as I can on the court, off the court, for us to be able to connect better.”
Djokovic, who is seeded sixth in Indian Wells, has a tough draw. His opening match will be against Boltic Van de Zandschulp, who gained entry into the draw as a lucky loser before. Later in the tournament, he could play Alex de Minaur in the fourth round followed by Carlos Alcaraz.
The airport video
Questions had been raised about Djokovic’s current fitness after a video of him limping surfaced on social media. The 37-year-old was seen walking awkwardly when entering the airport in Dubai which some believed was linked to the knee injury he suffered earlier this year.
However, Djokovic has eased those concerns over what he describes as an ‘awkward’ video of him. Explaining that he accidentally ‘hit himself badly’ en route to the airport but he didn’t suffer any significant injury in the process.
“It was really, yeah, awkward to see that video, because I arrived to the airport and I hit myself really badly as I was walking out, because it was very early, I think, 4 or 5 a.m. I was just limping because I hit myself badly in the ankle,” he explained. “That’s all. It was just a hit. It was nothing else. But then people connected it to the injury and thought it was something escalating and coming back.
“But anyway, I’m feeling good. I really look forward to coming to Indian Wells and Miami this year. I’ll play the Sunshine Double for the first time after, I think, six years.”
Djokovic aims to improve on his result from Indian Wells 12 months ago when he reached the third round before losing to Luca Nardi.
