It was the last piece of the puzzle for a player who really had nothing more to prove. He was a 24-time Grand Slam singles champion – the joint-record holder for most singles Slams with Margaret Court. He had spent 428 weeks as the world No.1 — more than any other singles player. And in August, at the Paris Olympic Games, he won the only title he had never won before.

Djokovic has long made it clear that he is driven by records. The 2024 season was the first time since 2017 that he had failed to win a Grand Slam title. There was a gap. And as the focus shifts to 2025, in one of his fiercest rivals on tour, he has found the missing piece. A new coach, Andy Murray.

At the Australian Open next week, the tennis world will see arguably the most intriguing player-coach combination there has been. Murray, a three-time Grand Slam champion and former world No.1 himself, will be sitting in the Djokovic box willing the man just a week younger than him to re-find the form that saw him become the greatest Grand Slam player in the Open Era.

One more Major for the Serbian will make him the most successful Grand Slam singles champion of all time. Djokovic will be driven by that statistic, but, as he saw throughout last season, it will be difficult.

Djokovic’s peak came in the era where the Big 3 of tennis dominated the circuit. But with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal now retired, he remains alone in a world where 23-year-old Jannik Sinner and 21-year-old Carlos Alcaraz are ruling the roost.

At 37, however, Djokovic is not done. With Murray on his side for a change, he has access to the mind of a master tactician. “He has a unique perspective on my game as one of the greatest rivals that I’ve had,” Djokovic told the ATP. “He knows the pros and cons of my game. He has also played up to recently on the Tour, so he knows all the other best players currently in the world, the youngsters and the weaknesses and strengths in their game.”

At the same Olympics where Djokovic completed the career Golden Slam, Murray called time on a long and illustrious career. He had competed against Djokovic since their junior days and that rivalry spilled out onto the biggest stages of the sport.

Djokovic was the opponent in seven of Murray’s 11 Major final appearances – the Brit managed to beat the Serb only at the 2012 US Open and the 2013 Wimbledon final, losing four Australian Open and one French Open final.

Djokovic had a 25-11 overall record against his now coach. A coach whom the Serb trusts will help him cover those marginal gaps in his game. “I definitely am looking to improve, even if it’s the slightest percentage, every single shot that I have in my game, and maybe something that people don’t necessarily see is this court positioning, the transition play, the tactics,” Djokovic said to the Australian Associated Press.

Though Murray’s calibre as a coach is yet to be truly tested, there is no denying the knowledge he brings to the table. And in many ways, the Djokovic-Murray combination may serve the Serb well.

Djokovic is no stranger to employing a star coach. He has worked with six-time Grand Slam winner Boris Becker in the past, with eight-time major winner Andre Agassi briefly, and more recently with 2001 Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic.

Murray however, belongs to the same vintage as Djokovic, and as such has the experience of what it’s like to be playing on slower courts compared to the era of Becker, Agassi and Ivanisevic. And just like the Serbian, Murray was also a gritty defensive baseliner.

Djokovic though, was possibly the best. A perennial chaser of lost causes who will get the ball back into play. Often with interest.

The 2024 season had been difficult for Djokovic. He may not have won a Slam, but he cannot be written off – consider that he reached the Wimbledon final just a few weeks after undergoing a knee surgery.

In Melbourne though, where he has won 10 of his 24 Majors, he’s coming back to an old stomping ground. This time, he’s armed with newbie coach Murray, an untested weapon by his side.