Despite being a surprising development, Andy Murray’s appointment as Novak Djokovic’s new coach has not been without controversy. The coach of Djokovic’s opponent Daniil Medvedev, Gilles Cervara, has publicly voiced doubt regarding Murray’s qualifications.
After the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Murray announced his retirement from professional tennis, and many people wondered what he would do next. Concerned about the Serbian’s dwindling dominance in the sport, the former world No. 1 quickly transitioned into a coaching position to lead Djokovic to yet another Grand Slam triumph.
Djokovic is now putting his faith in the two-time Wimbledon champion, having previously worked with renowned coaches like Boris Becker and Goran Ivanisevic. Cervara, who has seen Medvedev play Djokovic 15 times, including Medvedev’s historic triumph in the 2021 US Open final, isn’t sure Murray is the best person for the job, though.
Cervara told French publication L’Equipe: “Knowing Murray, I’m not surprised he jumped back into the fray so quickly. But whether he has the requisite skills to coach at this level is another matter entirely. Andy knows nothing about coaching. He lacks a definitive methodology, meaning he will learn on the job.”
Cervara’s perspective calls into question Murray’s role, implying that he might adopt a mentoring role instead of a conventional coaching role.
He said: “That doesn’t seem to be why Novak has chosen to work with him. Djokovic is either fully aware of his own game or will lean on the expertise of his team. It’s essential to challenge oneself to explore new training methodologies that may not be immediately evident. Anything could happen between the two. I anticipate that this partnership will yield benefits for Djokovic, although both parties will face substantial physical and mental challenges, especially when competing against top-tier opponents.”
“Knows nothing about coaching”: Daniil Medvedev’s coach gives harsh verdict on Murray-Djokovic link-up #Tennis https://t.co/4YpxZqMg2e
— TennisUpToDate (@TennisUpToDate2) November 28, 2024
Novak Djokovic in 2024
LWWWWWWLWW Currently the world no.7, Novak played his last match on the 13th of October when he capitulated to world no.1 Jannik Sinner 7-6(4) 6-3 in the final in Shanghai (draw).
During this season the Serbian owns a composed 37-9 match record. The Serbian clinched 1 title in Paris. Novak got to the final in Wimbledon and Shanghai.
Daniil Medvedev in 2024
Currently the world no.5, Medvedev played his last match on the 14th of November when he capitulated to world no.1 Jannik Sinner 6-3 6-4 in the round robin in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
This season Daniil achieved a compiled 46-21 match record. Daniil Medvedev’s best accomplishment of the present season was reaching the final at the Australian Open and Indian Wells.
Daniil Medvedev will fight against the world no.370 Diego Schwartzman in the Round Robin on Sunday at 4:00 pm on CENTER COURT. Their actual record is 6-0 for Medvedev.
Medvedev reached the final at the Australian Open and in Indian Wells (BNP Paribas Open).
Daniil won 21 titles in his career: 11 on hard courts, 1 on clay courts, 8 on indoor courts and 1 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev faced off 15 times. Their actual head to head record is 10-5 for Djokovic. The last time they played, Novak Djokovic won 6-3 7-6(5) 6-3 in the final in New York (U.S. Open) in September 2023.
In the following video you can watch the key moments of their match.
Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev |
| Embed from Getty Images |
