Novak Djokovic pretended to play the violin after beating Rinky Hijikata (Picture: Getty)
Novak Djokovic has poked fun at his tennis coach and friend Andy Murray over a family skiing trip, teasing the British legend over his injury record.
Big Four tennis icons Djokovic and Murray were once fierce rivals but are now very close, with the latter recently joining the Serbian’s coaching team.
Murray, though, has missed Djokovic’s first event of 2025 at the Brisbane International as the 24-time Grand Slam champion gets ready for the Australian Open on January 12.
Speaking after he defeated Rinky Hijikata 6-3 6-3 in his opening singles match of the year – Djokovic was quizzed on the court about Murray – and made reference to the Briton’s unfortunate record with injuries, which saw him require a metal hip to continue playing in his twilight years.
‘He’s actually skiing at the moment,’ Djokovic said. ‘He’s on a family skiing trip.
‘Sending my love to all the Murray family. I hope he doesn’t get injured skiing before he comes to Melbourne.
‘We spoke before the match. I’m excited to have him in my team. For 20+ years he’s been across the net. For the first time ever he’s on the same side of the court. Should be fun in Melbourne.’
Andy Murray will link up with Novak Djokovic in Melbourne (Picture: Getty)
Djokovic is also playing in doubles at the Brisbane International alongside tennis rebel Nick Kyrgios.
Djokovic and Kyrgios won their opening match against Alexander Erler and Andreas Mies on Monday.
Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios have reached the second round (Picture: Getty)
Kyrgios is finally back after a long spell on the sidelines with injury – but he is out of the Brisbane singles after losing to Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
The Aussie star, a Wimbledon runner-up in 2022, appeared to hurt his wrist during his first-round defeat in a fresh worry ahead of the Australian Open.
Kyrgios recently declared that tennis was ‘in the mud’ over various doping scandals.
He has been a vocal critic of Jannik Sinner, publicly criticising the Italian world No.1 on a number of occasions since he failed two drugs tests.