Novak Djokovic stood with his hands on his hips, listening intently to Andy Murray — his longtime on-court rival and now, stunningly, his coach at the Australian Open — between sets at Rod Laver Arena. Murray pantomimed the swing of a two-handed backhand. Djokovic took it all in, then responded.
The scene was remarkable because of the new — and “a little bit strange,” Djokovic said Monday night — relationship between these two stars of their sport, yes, but also because that face-to-face conversation was able to happen at all in the middle of a Grand Slam match.
