Former rivals trade fist pumps and whispers as Djokovic-Murray show begins

With his great friend in his coaching box, the Serb recovered from losing the first set to progress at the Australian Open

NEW ROLE: Novak Djokovic, left, of Serbia talks with his coach Andy Murray during his first round match against Nishesh Basavareddy. Picture: AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake

In a quiet corner of the player warm-up gym on Monday afternoon in Melbourne Park, one of the countless invasive cameras dotted around the tournament area captured a significant moment. After 24 years of sharing the same locker room as adversaries, of avoiding eye-contact before their matches and staying out of each other’s way, Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic stood face-to-face as Murray walked his new charge through their first ever pre-match pep talk together.

For a first-round match at a grand slam tournament, this was a trickier situation than either of them might have imagined. While player and coach have battled against the vast majority of people in the draw, and they are familiar with most players they have not, as the luck of the draw would have it, Djokovic found himself up against one of the few players in the 2025 Australian Open draw that he knew almost nothing about.