Andy Murray lifts lid on Roger Federer's rule: Why the Swiss master wouldn't practice with Nadal and Djokovic

Andy Murray has offered a rare glimpse into the guarded world of elite tennis, revealing why Roger Federer stopped practising with him early in his career and why the Swiss great largely avoided hitting with fellow legends Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.

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Speaking on the Stephen Hendry Cue Tips YouTube channel, Murray said practice sessions among top players were often as strategic as match play itself. While today's stars like Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner regularly train together, Murray explained that things were markedly different during his era.




“I would practice with them — I'd practice with Djokovic and Nadal,” Murray said. “When I first started, I would practice with Federer. But after a year or two, he stopped. He wouldn't practice with me anymore.”

Murray believes Federer drew a firm line once he identified genuine threats. “He never practiced with Djokovic or Nadal, I think because he considered them to be a competitor,” he added.

For Murray, those sessions with rivals were invaluable checkpoints. “I liked practicing with them because it gave me the chance to see where my game was at,” he said, admitting it helped him measure his progress against the very best.


Still, there were unspoken rules. Murray said he deliberately avoided practising with rivals too close to major tournaments, preferring to do so weeks in advance. Off court, the distance was even clearer.

“I was never going for dinner with them,” Murray said. “Whereas now I'd love to do that, see them a few times socially.”

Federer and Murray shared one of tennis' defining rivalries. Federer led their head-to-head 14–11 and won all three Grand Slam finals they contested, though Murray famously defeated him to claim Olympic gold at London 2012.

Murray also explained why genuine friendships are so rare at the top. “If I'm socialising with friends and family, you want to feel like you can tell them if you're struggling,” he said. “But if you're competing against them, you wouldn't do it.”


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