Patrick Mouratoglou is not entirely sure if Andy Murray is the right coach for Novak Djokovic.
The Serbian shocked the world when he announced his formal rival would be in his box at the start of 2025.
Djokovic was keen to find a full-time coach after ending his partnership with Goran Ivanisevic back in March.
It took eight months but the Olympic champion has found his man, and while many are excited by the prospect of seeing the former rivals now work together, Patrick Mouratoglou remains skeptical.
During the process of recruiting a new coach Novak Djokovic stressed the need to hire someone who has been on a similar journey in tennis.
He has known Andy Murray since their junior tennis days and they played in the same eras of tennis, with the Brit only just retiring from competition at the Olympic Games in August.
Djokovic thinks Murray is a perfect fit, as do many around the world, but Mouratoglou, one of world’s best coaches, is not completely on board with the new all-star pairing.
“Is Andy the right person to motivate him [Djokovic]? I would say yes and no. I would say no because I don’t think he has that personality,” Mouratoglou told Tennis Majors.
“He’s very quiet, but he’s very smart, and I think he’ll have good ideas on how to challenge Novak so that he finds a new form of motivation.”
Murray was open to the idea of coaching after his retirement, but it happened much sooner than anticipated and his first assignment was a complete shock.
Murray will do his best to help guide Djokovic back to Grand Slam success, having won any of tennis’ four biggest titles since the 2023 US Open. Having played for 20 years, the two-time Wimbledon champion has a wealth of knowledge in the game.
In fact, he was praised by Andy Roddick for having a strong tennis IQ, which was needed playing in an era which included Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
“I think Murray might have the highest tennis IQ I have ever seen and been around,” Roddick said. “He’s competed with these kind of superheroes without the biggest shot on the court and without being faster than them.
“He is a master of nuance, he is the master of scouting reports, he knows everything backwards, he’s a detail-oriented guy. You are not going to get into Novak’s ear by giving him lazy vagaries, you need some thought behind it.”
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