Years ago, before Thanasi Kokkinakis first met Andy Murray, he formed a preconceived idea about the Scottish player’s temperament. “I remember watching him when I was younger thinking: ‘This dude looks moody as hell, he looks miserable,’” Kokkinakis says. “Then, when you got to know him, he is actually a ripper bloke and a good guy. I’ll put all that aside and give it a crack tomorrow.”
Thursday’s second-round encounter at Melbourne Park will be a meeting of colleagues who very well could be friends. They know each other not through on-court battles – they have played each other just once, a straight-sets win for Murray at the 2015 Davis Cup – but through the guidance the younger has received from the elder. Most recently, that came in the form of some coaching in the lead-up to the US Open.
