Andy Murray was often criticised early in his tennis career, for his failure to break through and win the big matches. However, after winning Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, that pressure was relieved somewhat. However, he still seeks the Australian Open and French Open to complete a career Grand Slam and hasn’t won a major since his breakthrough win at Wimbledon in 2013.
In his preparation for the upcoming French Open and Wimbledon, he lost the Madrid Open final to none other than Novak Djokovic. The Serbian has been the nemesis for the 28-year-old Briton for most of his career. He continues to find ways to beat him. Without Novak, Andy would be the best there is, and have several other accolades upon his shelf. None the less, he must find a way to conquer his great rival, and it seems he believes a new coach could help. He has gone his separate ways from Amelie Mauresmo. Although the two got on, it’s clear he believes a new direction is needed to find the approach necessary to conquer Novak ahead of the upcoming majors.
He lost the Madrid Open, losing 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, but it was the latest of many losses to Novak that changed his tune. The world No. 2 is set to find a new coach, and perhaps that’s just what he needs. At 28, Murray has no time to waste. Evidently he believes he needs a new coach if he’s to compete with Novak and win more major titles.
He explained “It doesn’t have to be, but it’s definitely possible it could be an ex-player. They’ve been there and done it and they understand that.”
Murray is often a heavy favourite for every tournament he enters, but he always sits behind Novak. You can compare Murray’s odd to Djokovic, and it’s just clear that is he is falling short for some reason or another. Whether that be Amelie, or his own fault, time will tell. Something is missing, and perhaps the right coach, and new methods can be the right recipe for success for Andy.
He won’t appoint a new coach before the French Open, but they should be working together in time for Wimbledon, and the US Open. He stressed the importance of this coming decision, saying, “I’m not going into a full-time relationship with a coach without having tested it and trialled it.”
He concluded “I’ve done that with all of my coaches over the years and you do need a bit of time on the court together to see how the practice and the communication is going.”
Murray has found ways to compete with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, and with the two soon to be retiring, it’s clear that they’re not a worry. Of course he will lose matches to everyone from time to time. However, he’s come up against Novak so many times, and often finishes the loser, that it’s clear that something has to change.
He has improved upon his serve, his mentality and many other aspects of his game. But something is holding the British star back when it comes to finding a way to topple Novak. Whether it’s the fear of losing, or the inability to learn from his mistakes, he’s often too close for comfort.
Of course one wants to compete. However, he usually finishes just outside the margin of victory, showing that the little changes could make big differences. The change of coach, hiring Amelie, helped him massively. He went from flop to the very top, and now he’s hoping for similar success.
While this might the right long-term transitional move, it’s good that he’s not rushing. Perhaps the most important task he needs to learn is how to beat Novak more often. If he can do that, he’ll start to pick up the countless of Grand Slams that he has left in Novak’s cabinet instead.
Will Murray learn from his Madrid setback, and just how will a new coach help to better and enhance his performance and confidence ahead of the all-important Grand Slams?
