Australia’s
Thanasi Kokkinakis believes that playing against
Serbia’s
Novak Djokovic with former world number one
Andy Murray as his coach
will be like playing against two players instead of one. The 37-year-old, who
is regarded as the greatest player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles
category, having won as many as 24 Grand Slam titles, has recently hired Murray
as his coach after having a difficult season.
For the first time in seven years, Djokovic finished the whole season without winning a single Grand Slam. Those performances made Djokovic take the drastic step of changing his coaching staff for the upcoming 2025 season, and he hired the former British tennis star to sit in the dugout with him next season.
Murray, who is regarded as the greatest British player in history after winning three Grand Slams and multiple Olympic gold medals, retired
from professional tennis after the recently concluded 2024 Paris Olympics
because of fitness concerns, will be coaching for the first time. Australia’s
tennis player Kokkinakis has been recently quoted in a report by Daily Express where
he stated that facing Djokovic with the Glasgow-born as his coach will be like facing two players
in one.
“If you play against them, it’ll feel like you’re playing
two people instead of one,” he said. “There’s not really many people who can
tell Djokovic what to do on court. He’s been there and done it all. It’ll be
exciting to see how it plays out. I’m not sure how much of a difference he’s
going to bring but if there’s anyone who can tell him stuff, it’s Andy. I think
it’ll be just fun for fans and spectators. Seeing Andy in Djokovic’s box after
they’ve been rivals for so long. It’s something good for fans, it’s good for
media.”