Murray open to coaching return 'at some stage'

BBC News

2 days ago

Andy Murray is open to a return to coaching "at some stage" but says he still has plenty to learn about the role. The 38-year-old, who retired from tennis at the 2024 Olympics, joined long-time rival Novak Djokovic's coaching team last November.However, the pair parted company in May 2025 after just four tournaments together, with former number one Djokovic stating he "couldn't get more" out of their partnership.Murray was positive about the six months he and Djokovic spent together, hailing the "unique" experience of working with "one of the best athletes of all time", while also stating he had not planned on making the transition into coaching quite so soon after hanging up his racquet."I would do it again at some stage. I don't think that will happen immediately," he told BBC Sport's Clare Balding at the unveiling of the Andy Murray Arena at the Queen's Club on Monday. "I wasn't planning on going into coaching as soon as I finished playing but it was a pretty unique opportunity. It was a chance to learn from one of the best athletes of all time."You also learn a lot about how to work with a team. As an individual athlete, you have a team of people around you, but you're the focal point whereas when you're coaching an individual, you're working with a physio, physical trainers, agents, and you need to know how to get your message across to the player and find out what makes them tick. That was the thing I learned and something I need to work on if I want to do it again in the future."It was a brilliant opportunity for me. We got to spend some really nice moments away from the court. Results weren't as we wanted but we gave it a go."We'll see about coaching in the future but I don't think that will happen for a while."
'Men's tennis is in a great place'
While the jam-packed nature of tennis' schedule means focus has already shifted to the grass-court swing, this year's men's singles final at Roland Garros will be remembered as one of the all-time greats.Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz recovered from two sets down and saved three championship points to beat world number one Jannik Sinner after five hours and 29 minutes – the longest French Open final in history.The pair, who occupy the top two spots in the ATP rankings, have now shared the past six major titles between them and Sunday's final – their first meeting in a Grand Slam trophy match – confirmed the arrival of a new blockbuster rivalry in men's tennis.Murray believes Sunday's final is confirmation the sport is in a "great place" and tipped Britain's Jack Draper, ranked fourth in the world, to be part of the success."They're both brilliant athletes and very different personalities, which I think for fans is really exciting," Murray said. "For me, particularly Alcaraz has an exciting brand of tennis to watch, and they complement each other well. They've already had some brilliant matches and from what I've been told, it was one of the best finals for a long time."
"Moving forward, men's tennis is in a great place. People always worry at the end of a generation of players what's going to happen with the sport next, but generally sports continue to evolve and, in most cases, improve."Jack [Draper]'s right in the mix just now and doing extremely well. He's going to give himself opportunities to win majors over the next five, 10 years."However, while heaping praise on the next generation, Murray was keen to emphasise that Alcaraz and Sinner have a long way to go to match the 20 years of dominance achieved by Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic."The sport's in a really good place but it's important not to forget what the guys have done before them, what Roger, Rafa and Novak have done," he added."Winning 20-plus majors is something exceptional and it's easy in today's age to forget a little bit about that. I saw some pundits saying if [Alcaraz and Sinner] went on court against Rafa at the French Open, they would be favourites going into that match with Rafa in his prime."Alcaraz and Sinner are on the path to being two of the best, no doubt about that, but it takes time to build what Roger, Rafa, and Novak had. We'll see whether they get that."
'Queen's is always special for me'
Murray is synonymous with Queen's. The Scot is the most successful player in the tournament's history, winning a record five men's singles titles between 2009 and 2016. He also won the men's doubles with Feliciano Lopez in 2019.From this year, however, his name will not just adorn the honour's board but also the centre court at Queen's Club, which has been renamed the Andy Murray Arena."It's pretty surreal," he said. "A number of tennis courts around the world are named after great players. It's a bit strange to have a court named after you."I have a lot of amazing memories at this place and on that court. It's by far my most successful tournament that I competed in.
"I won my first ATP match here. I didn't dream of winning Wimbledon or being world number one, I just wanted to be a professional tennis player and play on the ATP tour. Moments like that, you remember; it was a special moment for me."Winning the tournament feels great and winning major events is the pinnacle of the sport but that wasn't my dream growing up. You remember moments like the place where you won your first tour match and that's why Queen's is always special to me."This grass-court season marks the return of women's tennis to Queen's for the first time in 52 years, with singles and doubles events taking place from 9 to 15 June before the men take to the courts the following week (16-22 June)."Having women's tennis back at Queen's for the first time in over 50 years is brilliant," Murray said."I hope the event gets well attended. They've got a brilliant field – I think 10 of the top 20 women are here. There'll be some brilliant matches and I always look forward to the grass season."