"I was very surprised" - Mouratoglou on Murray pairing up with Ivan Lendl for a 3rd time

Serena Williams' coach Patrick Mouratoglou admits he was 'very surprised' to see Andy Murray team up with Ivan Lendl for a third time.

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 Wimbledon titles and the US Open during a terrific four-year period. Lendl also guided Murray to world No 1 status before they went their separate ways.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Mouratoglou admitted he was very surprised by it:

"I was very surprised that Andy and Ivan started to work together again simply because they broke up two times already. 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!"

Speaking further on the matter, Mouratoglou said:

"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."