If it had been suggested to Murray in Paris that he would be back in the game coaching Djokovic five months later, he probably would have laughed.

There will be few, if any, jokes in Melbourne.

The two are born winners who know how committed and committed they are to being the best.

From this week’s insights, anything other than Djokovic securing a record-equalling 11th title would be unsatisfying.

“Sometimes it’s a lot of fun. But high performance doesn’t mean laughing, joking and goofing around,” Murray said.

“In all the times I’ve been on tour, I haven’t seen this from any of the best players in the world.”

“I’ve seen it with some lower ranked players and that’s one of the reasons they’re not included.”

During Djokovic’s open training sessions against Carlos Alcaraz, Jack Draper and Arthur Fils at Rod Laver Arena, Murray watched his every move closely.

Murray stood close behind Djokovic and sometimes in the doubles lane, giving constant feedback, shouting praise to the winners and taking notes during training sets.

He also compared observations with Boris Bosnjakovic, who ran Djokovic’s training center in Belgrade before becoming part of the team last May following the departure of long-term coach Goran Ivanisevic.

“It’s about making little changes and trying to help him and improve with the whole team,” Murray said.

And what if things don’t go well? Murray and Djokovic are both known for doing everything right in their penalty area, but this time the Scot could be on the other side.

“I know it’s not easy out there – it’s stressful and sometimes he wants to give his team and his box free rein,” Murray said.

“Provided he does his best and puts in as much effort as he can, I’m absolutely fine with him expressing himself the way he wants to.”