Andy Murray's hiring of Amelie Mauresmo as the person to replace Ivan Lendl as his coach surprised many people in the professional tennis circles.
Including, apparently, members of his own team.
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The Independent has reported that Mauresmo's hire may have had a hand in the departure of assistant coach, hitting partner and longtime friend Dani Vallverdu and longtime physical trainer Jez Green.
Both left at the end of 2014, according to the report.
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When asked about his team's shakeup, Murray said it had been brewing for months.
"The most important point in any team is that everyone has the same vision, everyone wants to move forward together. I feel that's what I have now. Maybe the last four or five months of last year it wasn't like that. It's not as much fun travelling when that's the case. If everyone isn't right into it, that isn't how you want to work."
After winning the U.S. Open in 2012 and Wimbledon in 2013, Murray was slowed by back surgery, missed the 2013 U.S. Open and did not reach a Grand Slam final last year for the first time since 2009, the Independent added.
"At Wimbledon there had been reports of discontent over the manner of Amélie Mauresmo's appointment as head coach in June, with Vallverdu and Green in particular said to have been unhappy at not being kept in the loop," the report stated.
Vallverdu was the one who stepped and accompanied Murray on trips in which Lendl chose not to attend when he was Murray's coach. The Scot conceded the possibility that Vallverdu may have thought he was in line to succeed Lendl when Lendl stepped down.
"That's possible," Murray admitted.
The reason Murray did not share that thought process, he said, was the lack of success he had when Vallverdu was with him in Lendl's stead.
"If you look at last year I spent only one tournament in the first six months with Ivan, at the Australian Open," Murray says. "The rest of the time I was with Dani every single week. I didn't have another coach travel with me at all.
"So he was the coach responsible for my training and all my practices at all of the tournaments. Maybe it didn't go as well as either of us would have liked and that's why I felt like I needed someone else."
Vallverdu has since agreed to become Tomas Berdych's coach.
"For him to get the opportunity to work with someone like Berdych is fantastic," Murray said. "He's obviously a top player and it will be a good challenge for him."
Matt Little, who had shared training duties with Green, changed Murray's regime as his lone trainer, involving the former No. 2 player in more speed work. Murray has noticed the difference so far, having beaten Feliciano Lopez and Rafael Nadal in exhibition matches last week in Abu Dhabi.
"Normally at the start of the year, when I hadn't played a match for a while and then I played, my body would be really sore. This year I played that long match with Lopez and I woke up the next day feeling good. Then I obviously played very well against Rafa the next day. So I think that was a sign that the training block had gone well."
Murray said he would not be in a rush to hire another assistant coach, even though Mauresmo's commitment is around 25 weeks, the Independent added.
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