It's a smart move from Djokovic: Tim Henman on Andy Murray becoming Novak's coach

Former Britain’s number one Tim Henman has revealed that he was ‘surprise’ to learn that his fellow countryman Andy Murray accepted the role to coach the former world number one Serbia’s Novak Djokovic. The 37-year-old, who is regarded as the greatest player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category, hired a new coach after having a rather below-par season.

Djokovic finished the season without winning a Grand Slam for the first time in seven years. That’s not it, as he also failed to win any ATP tournament in a calendar year. Those setbacks led him to change his coaching staff and hire the former world number one Murray as his coach for the 2025 season.

The three-time Grand Slam winner retired from professional tennis earlier this year after participating in the Paris Olympics, where he participated in the doubles category. He and his partner Dan Evans were eventually knocked out after losing in the quarterfinal to the pair of America’s Tommy Paul and Taylor Fritz in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 6-4. Former Britain’s number one Henman has recently spoken to Eurosport, and he admitted that he was a bit surprised after learning that the former world number one has accepted the role. However, the 50-year-old believes it was a ‘smart’ move by Djokovic and Murray.

"Andy's decision to coach Djokovic certainly took me by surprise," said Henman. "When I saw it on the internet, I had to check the date, whether it was an April Fools [joke]. But no, I think it's a smart move from Djokovic, because Andy's played against all those opponents that Djokovic is going to be up against. Andy's always been a great tactician, so I'm sure that fresh input can motivate Djokovic. And from Andy's point of view, having just retired in August, I was surprised that he wants to get back on the road that quickly. But only time will tell how the relationship evolves."