Andy Murray reveals where he was when he was asked to coach long-term rival Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open – as he opens up on wife Kim’s reaction to the shock move

Andy Murray was just finishing another round of golf when he told his playing partner he “couldn’t think of anything worse” than becoming a tennis coach – half an hour later came the phone call from Novak Djokovic, which changed his mind.

The Scot spoke for the first time here in Melbourne about the creation of the most high-profile coaching partnership in tennis history.

‘Novak messaged me because he just wanted to talk. It was just before Shanghai (late September) and we had exchanged messages and missed calls and stuff,” said the 38-year-old, fresh off the court for Djokovic’s final Australian Open practice.

“Then I was playing golf and I was on the 17th hole and the guy I was playing with said to me, ‘Do you know what’s next?’ I thought, “No, not really.” He said, “Do you have any plans to get into coaching?” And I said, “Honestly, I can’t think of anything worse to do right now.”

‘Half an hour later I was in the car, I called Novak and he asked if I was interested in helping, which I obviously didn’t expect. I told him, ‘Look, I have to think about it and talk to my family.’

Murray had been retired for less than four months, settled into a full-time family life and fell into a full-blown golf addiction.

The pair were rivals throughout their playing careers before Murray retired last year

Murray revealed that his wife Kim (right) was ‘very positive’ about his decision to coach Djokovic

But after talking things over with his wife Kim and their four children, he decided the opportunity to work with his former nemesis was his, and being a 24-time Grand Slam champion was an offer he couldn’t refuse.

“I talked to them and after a few days I thought it was a pretty unique opportunity and experience,” Murray said.

“I thought it would be a good idea to try it together, spend some time around Australia in the off-season and see how it goes for both of us, because it’s a bit different. It’s not the usual setup. So it made sense to try it out and see if it works. And then we said we would make a more final decision after the tournament.”

The obvious question was how Kim reacted to the prospect of Murray returning to work in the sport so soon after kicking the habit.

“My wife was very supportive of it,” he said. ‘I was actually going to be in Australia for a few days during the tournament. She was obviously surprised that he asked me, but she was really supportive. If it was a younger player, where it might be long term, you might expect a five, six year potential… I’m not sure if that’s necessarily the case with Novak, but you never know if it he’s doing well!’

On Thursday, Djokovic was placed in the same part of the Australian Open as Carlos Alcaraz. If the 38-year-old wants to win an 11th title here, coach Murray may have to guide him past Alcaraz in the quarter-finals, world number two Alexander Zverev in the semi-finals and Jannik Sinner in the final.