Andy Murray, Amelie Mauresmo Mutually Agree to End Tennis Coaching Partnership

Andy Murray has "mutually" ended his coaching partnership with two-time Grand Slam winner Amelie Mauresmo, it was reported on Monday.

Ben Rothenberg of the New York Times broke the news and shared statements from both Murray and Mauresmo:

The Scot lost to Novak Djokovic in the Madrid Open final on Sunday. 

Murray appointed Mauresmo as his coach in 2014 after parting ways with Ivan Lendl, under whom he won the U.S. Open, an Olympic gold medal and Wimbledon.

Under the Frenchwoman, the 28-year-old reached two Australian Open finals but lost to Djokovic on both occasions, and he won seven of his 12 ATP finals—albeit Sunday's defeat means he has been defeated in his last three.

Sports journalist Gary Petersen believed Mauresmo did not have as notable an impact on the Scot's game as Lendl did:

Writer Liam Canning hailed the change in attitude Murray displayed during his defeat to Djokovic on Sunday, though:

"

A couple of years ago, you'd have seen Murray bow out to Djokovic when things got tough. Changed man. Admire his tenacity and courage.

— Liam Canning (@OffsideLiam) May 8, 2016"

In March, Murray was forced to deny speculation a rift had developed between the pair in the wake of his third-round defeat to Grigor Dimitrov at the Miami Open, per Sky Sports' Andrew Dickson.

Nevertheless, as noted on Sky Sports News HQ, the news came as something of a surprise:

Rothenberg and the Press Association's Tom Allnutt remarked on Murray's options for a new coach:

Djokovic has certainly had the better of Murray in recent years; before the Scot appointed Mauresmo, the Serbian only boasted an 11-8 lead over him in their head-to-head record, and it now stands at 23-9.

The 2016 French Open is just around the corner, as the first round begins on May 22. As in 2014, Murray may arrive at Roland Garros without a coach in place before replacing Mauresmo ahead of Wimbledon.

Murray reached the semi-finals in Paris that year—his joint-best performance in the competition—before exiting at the hands of clay expert Rafael Nadal.

In the circumstances, reaching at least the same stage this year—which would be his third successive semi-final at the French Open—would be an excellent achievement.