"Novak Djokovic isn't as fit as 5-6 years ago" - Jay Clarke on Andy Murray joining Serb's team, difference between ATP and ITF pros & more (Exclusive)

World No. 294 Jay Clarke is one of the best players competing on the ATP Challenger and ITF Futures circuits. The Brit has lofty ambitions though, and despite requiring surgery for a serious wrist injury in 2021, he hasn't given up on a top-flight career as a tennis pro.

Clarke first came to recognition in the men's doubles competition at 2017 Wimbledon when he teamed up with Marcus Willis to upset defending champions Nicolas Mahut and Pierre-Hugues Herbert en route to a third-round result. Two years later, he scored his first Major-level victory in singles at SW19 before going out to eventual runner-up Roger Federer in the second round.

Although the 26-year-old's career hasn't had the steepest upward curve since, he has achieved considerable success in the secondary tier of pro tennis. He recently sat down with Sportskeeda for an exclusive chat at the 2025 DafaNews Bengaluru Open, giving our readers a first look into his articulate insights and pleasant character.

During the interaction, the former World No. 153 gave his thoughts on the new Novak Djokovic-Andy Murray partnership, his preference for claycourts, and the state of the ITF circuit.

*Note - The exclusive interview was conducted after Jay Clarke's first-round victory at the DafaNews Bengaluru Open last Thursday (February 27). He exited the Challenger-level event in the second round to eventual finalist Shintaro Mochizuki two days later.

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Exclusive chat with Jay Clarke

Sportskeeda: You've won eight ITF titles on clay but you seem to have a good aptitude for hardcourts, as well, with three titles to your name. Would you say your game is better suited to clay or hard?'

Jay Clarke: I think if you want to reach the top of the game, you have to be good at everything. I prefer clay personally and I grew up playing on clay through under-14 tennis to ITF, most of the time I played on clay, but I train on hard. So, um, yeah, I like both. I love both aspects. My favorite service is actually grass. I grew up playing on grass and synthetic grass. [But] yeah, I love playing on clay.

Sportskeeda: Congratulations on today's win over Kasidith Samrej, who almost beat Daniil Medvedev at this year's Australian Open. It is a bit telling about the small bridge between those who play on the ITF circuit and those who play on the ATP tour.

Jay Clarke: The margin is very small now I think. Maybe 10-15 years ago, there was a big gap between Challenger players and Futures players. And then, another big gap between the ATP guys. But you see it with guys like [Joao] Fonseca, you know, all the young ones when they do get the chance to win matches.

Last year, in Wimbledon qualifying I beat Diego Schwartzman. Obviously, it was into his last year but he's a very good grass player who made the fourth round a few times.

Sportskeeda: The game is currently in a transition phase in terms of playing style. Players have to have a higher level of physicality now. Moreover, a few players like Alexander Zverev have said that the game is slower now, primarily due to the balls having slowed down considerably on the ATP Tour. Is that something that has affected the ITF circuit?

Jay Clarke: ITF, not so much I guess because it's not, like, regulated (the surface speed). I played on some courts which are so fast, and I've played on courts which are very, very slow.

Sportskeeda: But what about the balls? Do you think they are slower?

Jay Clarke: I think the balls are slower. But ITF, it's a different ball change anyway. It's 11-13 (slow) and here is 7-9 (relatively slow). So, for sure the ITFs are slower. It's tough to get through ITF's [balls] and obviously playing on clay as I prefer, it goes even slower and they were on hardcourt.

The game has slowed down but I think everybody now is better physically than they were 15-20 years ago on the tour, as well. I think they slowed it down for the spectators but I mean, you can still hit winners. It's just tougher than it was before.

Sportskeeda: You said a few years ago that Andy Murray was instrumental in your growth as a tennis player. Can you elaborate on how he contributed to your career and gave you guidance?

Jay Clarke: The first time I met Andy was in 2017 and I flew to Paris with him on his jet to help him prepare for Roland Garros. And that was the first time we actually spent like a good four, five days together. And then in 2021, I moved to London to train out of the National Tennis Center and we spent a lot of time together. He would give me tactics, you know, we'd practice together at tournaments, big tournaments, so I get to hit on the big courts.

Andy Murray and Jay Clarke also faced off in Battle of the Brits 2020 exhibition | Image Source: Getty

He's just a really nice guy, to be honest, and I love the fact that he's still hungry. He's obviously [gonna] stay on tour with good players and just be around them, and it's nice for us to know he hasn't changed with all his success. I think that's a really important lesson which all the youngsters can take.

Sportskeeda: What do you think he can offer to Novak Djokovic as his coach?

Jay Clarke: I mean, a lot of things I guess. Maybe perspective, that, you know, Djokovic is older now. He's not as fit as maybe five or six years ago, and Andy played the last three or four years of his career with a metal hip. So he wasn't as fit as well, but it's just finding a way to win.

I think Andy's unbelievable tactically, as well. That's probably another element that Djokovic hasn't, I would say, had in his game and you saw how he was able to beat Alcaraz in four after the last few times he played looking like he was the underdog almost in those matches. But the fact that he's been able to add that much already shows how good Andy is and it also is a credit to Djokovic actually listening to someone like that.

Sportskeeda: Lastly, who is your dream doubles partner?

Jay Clarke: I used to love playing with my dad (Earol Clarke, who also coached Jay Clarke in his childhood). My dad can't play anymore, but when I first started playing tennis for maybe the first two years, all the matches I played in the men's double tournaments were with my dad. Oh, if I could again, I'd love to play with my dad again. He played county and regional, and I would've been very young. I'd have been maybe six or seven and we'd do like, father-and-son competitions and stuff. Yeah, those are always still my fondest memories.