Q: Is it confusing being Novak Djokovic? A: It is ...

Tormented champion returns to action searching for answers

ANDY MURRAY is not long returned from the south of France, where he had his first serious sessions on the practice court, taking the long road to his hoped-for comeback next month. This week, just along the coast from his base of the Mouratoglou Academy in Nice, Murray’s direct contemporary and long-time rival Novak Djokovic plays the Monte Carlo Open, which raises the curtain on the European summer of tennis.

Getting back to somewhere near their best is proving a pained journey for these two champions born a week apart, their careers synchronising yet again.

Both departed last summer’s Wimbledon injured, and both substantially delayed having surgery to try to cure their respective hip and elbow problems before undergoing operations within a month of each other.

And in the midst of this, both have lost their part-time ‘supercoaches’, Ivan Lendl and Andre Agassi. In both cases, there appear to have been disagreements about the best way to approach the tricky question of dealing with careerthreatening injuries.

While the lesser-spotted Lendl and Murray kept things relatively cordial in PR terms when parting in November, there was evident rancour in the recent split between Agassi and Djokovic. It looked like there was an element of the American wanting to get his retaliation in first.

The Serb was holidaying with his family in the Dominican Republic after his early exit from the Miami Open when Agassi used his close confidant and former coach Darren Cahill, a commentator with ESPN, as a conduit for his resignation note.

‘We far too often found ourselves agreeing to disagree,’ stated Agassi, straying from the usual pleasantries that accompany these occasions.

Not until five days later did Djokovic respond, announcing his second support team clear-out within a year. Former player Radek Stepanek was on his way just four months after being appointed to a more full-time role.

After the statement fulsomely thanked the Czech, there was a terse: ‘The co-operation between Novak and Agassi has also ended.’

Stepanek’s departure coincides with the news that his partner, former top-ten star Nicole Vaidisova, is expecting their child this summer. They were once married to each other, but divorced in 2013.

As for Agassi, neither he nor Djokovic have expanded on the reasons behind their schism. Certain factors have, though, emerged in the wake of the player’s fourth-round exit at the Australian Open and wayward defeats in his opening matches at Indian Wells and Miami.

Agassi counselled him against rushing back in the Californian desert so soon after his surgery at the start of February. He is also, like his high-profile predecessor Boris Becker, said to have been concerned about Djokovic’s obsessive dietary habits, and wanted him to add some bulk to his wiry frame.

Goran Ivanisevic, another of the star-coach brigade, made an interesting contribution to the debate on Djokovic’s issues, telling Montenegro publication Vijesti that the former world No1 was using a lighter racket to ease pressure on

his elbow, never an easy switch. The player has not confirmed this.

Agassi also raised eyebrows at Djokovic’s preoccupation with leading his fellow players in a drive to establish a players’ union, which is ongoing.

Cahill suggested that Djokovic might not have been ‘fully invested’ in his coaching arrangement with Agassi, although the player could argue that the sporadic nature of their 10-month partnership hardly constituted a huge commitment from the Las Vegan either.

In fact, a wider theme has emerged from the superstar-coach trend begun by Murray’s hiring of Lendl, namely their tendency to make an impact when all is going well, but not to be around too much to pick up the pieces when things get broken.

Last seen, Djokovic cut a devastated figure following his defeat to Benoit Paire in Miami. The media have become used to him giving long, rambling answers to questions, but when asked whether it was ‘confusing, disorientating’ to be in his situation, he simply replied, with a hint of existentialism: ‘It just is.’

Since then, he looks to have gone back to basics by requesting the help of the low-key coach who was integral to his greatest triumphs which included the feat of holding all four Grand Slam titles at once — Marian Vajda.

Vajda, who was cleared out with Djokovic’s physio and fitness trainer only last May, is back for Monte Carlo, but the arrangement is only temporary for now.

Djokovic faces an awkward draw in Monte Carlo, a qualifier in the first round and then a potential early meeting with Rafael Nadal, although he seemed in a cheerful enough mood when he played a charity event yesterday alongside former England cricket captain Andrew Flintoff, among others.

As with Murray, it would be very foolish to underestimate Djokovic’s chances of revival at this point. If either of them gets fully fit and regains confidence, they should still be superior to the challengers who have failed, almost embarrassingly, to make life more difficult for the ageing Nadal and Roger Federer.

With the sun coming up on the European season in its Monaco playground, how the two 30-year-olds fare may be the most fascinating narrative of the summer.

Agassi, like his predecessor Becker, became concerned about Novak’s obsessive dietary habits