Andy Murray decided to show some love and appreciation to Novak Djokovic ahead of his possibly last-ever match as the British tennis star took a moment to acknowledge their rivalry and the moments they shared over the years.
On Sunday, Murray and Daniel Evans will play their Paris Olympics doubles first-round match versus Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori. And since Murray confirmed before the start of the Olympics that he was playing his last tournament, that means that the three-time Slam champion’s career could potentially end as soon as tomorrow.
While Murray meeting Djokovic isn’t possible since the Briton pulled out of the singles event and the Serb is not competing in the doubles event, the British former world No. 1 figured out a way to reflect on his rivalry with Djokovic, which started when they were juniors.
“Rivals, doubles partners, friends and lovers? (see slide 3). Thanks for the 25 years of competition @djokernole and good luck for rest of your career,” Murray wrote on Instagram.
Murray and Djokovic met 36 times
Between 2006 and 2017, Murray and Djokovic played against each other 36 times – with the Serb winning 25 of those meetings. Shockingly, they haven’t had any meetings in the last seven years but it should be noted that Murray had two hip surgeries and that he was never able to regain his old level and return to making deep runs on the biggest stage.
Before the start of the Olympics, Djokovic also paid a nice tribute to Murray.
“I heard the news about Andy and I hope that he will have the best possible farewell in his last competitive match here in Olympics for him and his country. He is a legend of our sport, he’s been an incredibly important player for tennis globally,” Djokovic said.
Two of Murray’s three Grand Slam titles came after beating Djokovic as the Briton beat the Serb in the 2012 US Open final for his first Major before also winning their 2013 Wimbledon final.