'Searching inside again': Alex Corretja highlights what Novak Djokovic must do to regain lost form after ending partnership with Andy Murray

Former Spanish player Alex Corretja believes that ending a partnership with former world number one Andy Murray might help Serbia’s Novak Djokovic find the right motivation ahead of the busy Grand Slam season. The 38-year-old recently decided to part ways with the three-time Grand Slam winner, who became his coach just six months ago, in a surprising move.

One of the primary reasons behind Djokovic's recent decision to have a new coaching staff is his recent concern about his form. The Belgrade-born star, who is regarded as the greatest player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category in the Open era, having won as many as 24 Grand Slam titles, has not won any ATP event since the start of 2024. This year, the current world number seven, who is currently taking part in the Geneva Open, has featured in seven events but only managed to cement a spot in the final in just one of them.

He featured in just two semifinals and suffered a defeat in his first match on four occasions. His most recent outing before the ongoing ATP event in Geneva came at the Madrid Open, where he lost in the round of 64 to Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-4. Former French Open finalist runner-up Corretja has recently spoken to TNT Sports, where he suggested that separating from Murray might give Djokovic another reason to motivate himself ahead of the busy Grand Slam season.

"Maybe they thought that they're not on the same path right now,” he said. "Maybe Andy feels like he’s not helping him as much as he thought he could because Novak is not ready for that. Maybe he needs his time and he needs to just do things the way he wants and doesn't need to be told what to do. It's a shame because I think it was very attractive for everyone to have them together, but they tried and well, it worked as it worked, but probably different as they expected. I think Novak knows better than anyone else that the motivation doesn't come from outside. It comes from inside. That's the thing that he might have realised in the last five months while working with Andy. It's not a matter of Andy Murray or bringing in Andre Agassi or Pete Sampras or Rafa Nadal or Roger Federer. It's about Novak Djokovic's feelings. That's why I think he needs to keep on going, searching inside again and see what he feels he can still achieve. I think it's a major season for Novak. If he doesn't win a huge event or one of the big events, I'm not so sure he will ever get back the motivation,"