Andy Murray has delivered a brutal assessment of his new pupil Novak Djokovic after the Serbian tennis star was spotted enjoying some time off by attending the Qatar Grand Prix.
The Scot shocked the tennis world last week as he announced he will coach the 24-time Grand Slam winner in one of the most sensational appointments in the sport’s history.
Murray, who retired from playing in August after a glittering 19-year career, will be part of his long-time rival’s coaching set-up for January’s Australian Open.
Djokovic beat Murray in four Australian Open finals, a competition he has won 10 times.
The Serb posted the surprise news on social media with the caption: ‘He never liked retirement anyway.’
But Djokovic has now been admonished by his coach after pictures were posted on Instagram of him living it up in Qatar while taking in some Formula One action.
Andy Murray has taken a dim view of Novak Djokovic’s recent trip to the Qatar Grand Prix
The Serb visited teams including McLaren as he enjoyed some time off from tennis
Djokovic looked in a relaxed mood as he strolled around the circuit at the Grand Prix
Murray replied to the post: ‘He should be on the practice court.’
His new student responded to being publicly called out by saying: ‘Sorry coach, I will be back soon.’
Djokovic rubbed shoulders with some of the top names in racing while in Qatar and the post, courtesy of the Mercedes official account, showed the tennis legend posing with Silver Arrows driver George Russell while having a look around the team paddock.
The post was accompanied by the caption: ‘Ace to welcome you into the team today.’
He also visited the paddocks of leading constructors McLaren and Ferrari and was spotted exchanging notes with Alpine star Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon.
While in Qatar, Djokovic told Sky Sports: ‘I took about six months to really think about if I really need a coach, and if yes, who that’s going to be and the profile of the coach.
‘We were going through different names and I realised the perfect coach for me at this point would be someone that has been through the experiences that I’m going through, possible multiple Grand Slam winner, former No 1.
‘I was thinking about different people and then a discussion appeared on the table with me and my team. It was still a shock decision. It caught him a little bit off guard as well because he wasn’t expecting it.
The 24-time champion was spotted having his beard trimmed during a holiday in Qatar
Murray beat his new pupil in the 2013 Wimbledon final (pictured) – his first win in the tournament
Djokovic announced his shock new coach, who he beat in the 2016 French Open final (pictured) last week
He got to see already-crowned world champion Max Verstappen dazzle in yet another victory
‘We connected really fast and he accepted after a few days. I couldn’t be more excited about it. This collaboration is a surprise to me as well, to everyone, but it’s exciting for tennis.
‘He’s been one of my greatest rivals. We’re the same age. We’ve played in all the biggest stadiums in our sport. So I can’t wait to get out on the court and prepare for next season.’
Djokovic was lucky enough to see Max Verstappen, fired up after being denied pole by the stewards on Saturday night, roar to victory in Qatar – as Lewis Hamilton finished down and out on another demoralising day for the Brit.
Verstappen was fuming after the stewards plunged him one place back for impeding Russell in qualifying, though it was not on their flying laps but two corners before.
The world champion’s go-slow caused Russell to run over the gravel, perhaps damaging his car and costing him time. The Briton qualified second fastest before being bumped up and Verstappen bumped down at 1am local time, three hours after the incident.
Off the start, Verstappen’s Red Bull was away with purpose, though McLaren’s Lando Norris pushed himself through at the first corner as Verstappen squabbled with Russell. But Verstappen, as per usual, retook the lead immediately and never looked like surrendering it a week after clinching his fourth world title. The Dutchman led every lap.
Charles Leclerc finished a good runner-up for Ferrari, six seconds off Verstappen and a place ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.
