Novak Djokovic says his decision to appoint former rival Andy Murray as his coach was “a surprise to everyone” but is “exciting for tennis”.

Britain’s three-time Grand Slam champion Murray, who retired from tennis in August, will work with Djokovic in the off-season and in the build-up to the Australian Open.

Men’s record 24-time major winner Djokovic, speaking to Sky Sports, admitted his phone call caught Murray “a little off-guard”.

But the 37-year-old Serb said the pair “connected really fast” and Murray took only a few days to agree to the role, less than four months after ending his career at the Paris Olympics.

Djokovic, who is level with Margaret Court for the most major singles titles won by any player, said: “I took about six months to figure out what I needed at this stage of my career.

“I realised the perfect coach would be someone who has been through the experiences I’m going through, possibly a multiple Grand slam winner and world number one.

“We discussed Andy Murray and I said I would give him a call and see how it goes. It caught him a little of guard. We connected really fast and he accepted after a few days.

“I couldn’t be more excited about it. This collaboration is a surprise to everyone, including me, but it’s exciting for tennis.”

The Serb ended his wait for Olympic gold in Paris this summer but otherwise had a difficult 2024 by his high standards.

It is the first season since 2005 in which Djokovic did not win an ATP event, while he failed to win a major title for the first time since 2017.

Born just weeks apart, Djokovic and Murray grew up as junior rivals before competing against each other for the sport’s biggest titles.

Rafael Nadal became the latest of the ‘Big Four’ era in the men’s game to leave the sport in November, with the end of Murray’s career coming after Roger Federer retired in 2022.

Discussing his own future, Djokovic said: “We all know we have to stop and say goodbye at some point. Even though it was expected for Rafa and Andy, both of them saying farewell to the sport is a shock for all of us.

“My body is serving me well, I still have motivation to win Grand Slams. The reason I asked Andy to work with me is because I still have big plans.

“I’ll keep going as much as I can feel like I can keep being a candidate for the biggest titles.”