Imagine if Messi coached Ronaldo: Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray team up at the Australian Open

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) - Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray have known each other for a quarter of a century. They played from the age of 12, meeting 36 times as professionals, including 10 Grand Slam matches. Yet they’ve never been able to talk shop and freely trade all sorts of thoughts - about tennis and otherwise - until now.

That’s because Djokovic got the bright idea to hire the recently retired Murray as his coach, at least through the Australian Open that begins Sunday (Saturday EST).

"I must say, at the beginning, it was a bit of a strange feeling to be able to share the insights with him, not just about the game but about how I feel, about life in general. Not in a negative way, but just in a way I have never done that with him, because he was always one of my greatest rivals," Djokovic said Friday. "We were always kind of hiding things from each other. Now all cards are open on the table."

It’s an unusual pairing that caught their sport by surprise in November, after Djokovic called up Murray to check on the possibility of teaming up. Two rivals now on the same side. Daniil Medvedev, the 2021 U.S. Open champion, drew on soccer to try to explain how out-of-this-world this relationship is.

"Imagine," Medvedev said, "(if Lionel) Messi would become the coach of Cristiano Ronaldo. It would be strange."

Indeed. It sure is odd to see Murray standing just steps away from Djokovic behind a baseline during practice sessions.

These are, after all, two of the greats of tennis. Djokovic owns a men’s-record 24 Grand Slam titles, including 10 at the Australian Open, and has spent more weeks ranked No. 1 than anyone in history. Murray also has been No. 1, owns three major singles trophies, was a Slam runner-up eight times - five of those losses in finals coming against Djokovic, including four at Melbourne Park - and is the only player with two Olympic singles gold medals in tennis.

"Could never quite get over the line (in Melbourne), unfortunately. This man was single-handedly responsible for that. So I’m now here to try and sabotage his chances of winning another one," Murray joked.

"Novak asked me to help him; I was shocked," said Murray, whose last match as a player came at the Paris Olympics in August. "I was obviously not expecting that when he called."

Both men are 37; they were born a week apart in May 1987. Djokovic led their head-to-head series as pros 25-11, including 8-2 at the Slams. But those two losses were two of the biggest wins of Murray’s career: In the finals of the U.S. Open in 2012, his first major championship, and Wimbledon in 2013, when he ended Britain’s 77-year wait for a British man to take the singles crown at the All England Club.

"We thought we'd give it a go and see if I can help," Murray said. "Novak is not just one of the best tennis players of all-time. He's one of the best athletes of all-time. I expected him to be an extremely hard worker. Very diligent. Always looking to improve."

Djokovic split from coach Goran Ivanisevic last March after a dozen majors titles together and never hired a full-time replacement.

It’s not clear whether Djokovic and Murray will stick together beyond Australia.

They spent a little more than a week together in the offseason and have been working together less than a week in Melbourne.

"I was thinking about the names that I would like to have next to me for this season. I wanted to have somebody that won multiple Slams. The list is not that long. Somebody that really understands what it means to win a Slam, what it means to face the adversity, the pressure, the expectations," Djokovic said.

"Andy just finished his playing career six months ago. It was somewhat of a surprise for him when I called him,” Djokovic added. “But I think his tennis IQ is very high. We all know that."