Top five celebrity coach - player pairs

Partnerships are vital in any team sport and even though tennis is primarily an individual sport, the player- coach partnership is crucial and can go a long way to ensure the success of the player. Former players often become coaches not only to stay in touch with the game, but also to share their knowledge with the young and the experienced alike. Let us look at some of the best coach- player pairs.

#5 Jimmy Connors - Andy Roddick

Jimmy Connors with Andy Roddick

Jimmy Connors won eight Grand Slam singles titles and finished runner-up on seven occasions. He was the first male player in the Open Era to rank No. 1 for more than five years in total and more than 200 weeks. He held a year-end top ten ranking for an Open Era record 16 years.

He is the only male player in the Open era to win more than 100 titles. He has 109 titles to his credit, the next best being Ivan Lendl with 94.

His success as a player did not show in his coaching stint. He was the coach of American Andy Roddick from 2006 to 2008. Roddick could not add to his lone US Open title he won in 2003 and their partnership ended.

Connors was also the coach of Maria Sharapova for just one match.

#4 Stefan Edberg - Roger Federer

Stefan Edberg with Roger Federer

Stefan Edberg won six Grand Slam singles titles and was World No. 1 in both singles and doubles. He was part of the Swedish team that won the Davis Cup on four occasions. Edberg started coaching Roger Federer in January 2014. The year 2013 wasn’t a great year for Roger where his best result in Grand slams was a semifinal apperance in the Australian Open. He was knocked out in the second round at Wimbledon and fourth round at the US Open.

Edberg’s association with Roger brought back his best tennis even though he did not win any major. He reached the semis in Melbourne, fourth round in Paris, final at Wimbledon and semifinal at the Open. He looked more positive on court and it will be interesting to see where this partnership is headed.

#3 Tony Roche - Lleyton Hewitt

Tony Roche with Lleyton Hewitt

Tony Roche won the 1966 French Open title and is the sole Grand Slam win in his career. Roche is one of the most successful coaches of all time and is known for mentoring several World No. 1 players and Grand Slam Champions Ivan Lendl, Patrick Rafter, Roger Federer, and Lleyton Hewitt.

Roche tried to resurrect the career of Hewitt in a way during 2007-09.

#2 Ivan Lendl - Andy Murray

Ivan Lendl with Andy Murray

Ivan Lendl won eight Grand Slam titles and was a runner-up at Wimbledon on two occasions. He is second on the list of most titles won by a male player with 94 titles.

Lendl was appointed as coach to Andy Murray in 2011. He helped the Scot improve his consistency and maturity as he won his first two Grand Slams- 2012 US Open and 2013 Wimbledon, thereby ending Britain’s wait for a singles major champion since 1936.

Murray ended his two-year partnership with Lendl in 2014.

#1 Boris Becker - Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic with Boris Becker

The youngest winner of Wimbledon at just 17 years, Boris Becker has six Grand Slams singles titles in his kitty. He is also an Olympic gold medallist in doubles.

Novak Djokovic hired him as the full-time coach in December 2013. The World No.1 won his second Wimbledon title under his guidance.