Serena Williams‘ coach Patrick Mouratoglou admits he was ‚very surprised‘ to see Andy Murray team up with Ivan Lendl for a third time – but he believes the Scot is capable of reaching the quarter or semi-final of a Grand Slam once again.
Murray, 34, announced a shock reunion with Lendl earlier this month, having previously parted company on two separate occasions in 2014 and 2017.
Under the Czech-American, an eight-time Grand Slam winner in his own career, he claimed two Wimbleton titles and the US Open during a terrific four-year period.
Serena Williams‘ coach admits he was ’surprised‘ to see Andy Murray and Ivan Lendl reunite
Lendl also guided Murray to world No 1 status before they went their separate ways.
Yet despite their previous success together, Mouratoglou was not expecting the pair to join forces for a third time.
‚I was very surprised that Andy and Ivan started to work together again simply because they broke up two times already,‘ he told Sky Sports.
‚It’s more difficult for him to win a Grand Slam now because of his surgery, but Ivan is probably excited to see Andy’s motivation.
‚What Andy is doing is super-inspiring but he’s always been inspiring, winning three Grand Slams at a time when those three guys are playing – Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic – it’s incredible!
Murray, 34, claimed all three of his Grand Slam titles under the tutelage of Lendl
But Patrick Mouratoglou (left) did not expect to see the pair join forces for a third time
‚Being able to reach No 1 in the world with those three guys playing is also incredible. He’s shown in the past how dedicated he is to this game and how much of a crazy hard fighter he is.‘
Murray, now ranked 84 in the world, is a different proposition for Lendl these days, having not reached a Grand Slam final for six years due to a host of injury problems and major surgeries.
He has not made it past the third round of a major tournament for five years, but Mouratoglou believes that can change under Lendl’s tutelage.
The 51-year-old continued: ‚I don’t feel like Andy’s goal is to win a Grand Slam because I don’t think he can see himself doing that at the moment but to do the best he can. He has always been like this throughout his career, with this mindset, to do the best he can.
‚I think it’s great and I can completely imagine him reaching a quarters or a semis of a Grand Slam, why not? And if he does, then everything is possible.‘
Yet he does feel Murray and Lendl can reach a Grand Slam quarter or semi-final once again