Seeing a player interact with their coach from the coach's box at the Australian Open is jarring for many tennis traditionalists.
But seeing Andy Murray in that same box advising Novak Djokovic is bordering on the unthinkable for most.
Even the Serbian legend called it "strange".
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Yet for those in the know, Murray has long been a proponent of analytics, long before it was popular.
And with the eighth instalment of the intergenerational rivalry between Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz set to take place in a final eight clash in Melbourne on Tuesday night, tennis' new odd couple has its first real test.
The clash will be the first between the two at the Australian Open — and the first in the quarter-finals of a tournament; each of the others came in either a semi-final or final.
Djokovic owns the head to head battle at 4-3 yet at grand slams, Alcaraz leads 2-1.
On this occasion, Djokovic has what could turn out to be a secret weapon for the Serbian star, contends former Australian player John Millman.
"When Andy played he was more of the data driven players out there. He used to have a person from the LTA that would be going through the statistics," he told Wide World of Sports' The Morning Serve.
"He felt better going into a match like this with that wealth of information. I'm sure he's bringing that into the Djokovic camp."
There is plenty at stake at this tournament for both No.3 seed Alcaraz, who is 21, and No.7 Djokovic, who is 37.
Djokovic said that playing Alcaraz reminds him “of my match-ups versus (Rafael) Nadal, in terms of the intensity and the energy on the court. He’s a very dynamic, explosive player. Incredibly talented. Charismatic player. Great to watch; not that great to play against.”
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Millman believes Murray's addition to the coaching staff has a lot to do with trying to gain an edge and challenging the next set of stars in the sport.
"With the resurgence of young players coming through, I feel like there's that added motivation to have Djokovic go to that next level," Millman said.
"That's the reason why he bought Andy Murray into his camp to find those 1-per centers and to match it with the younger players, who people were saying were passing him.
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"Andy Murray and Carlos Alcaraz have played each other a couple of times. It was a 1-1 head-to-head. We know that Andy loves to break down his opponents."
Alcaraz seeks to become the youngest man to complete a career Grand Slam with at least one trophy from all four of the biggest events in tennis.
His four so far came elsewhere: two at Wimbledon by virtue of wins over Djokovic in the 2023 and 2024 finals, and one apiece at the US Open in 2022 and the French Open last year.
Djokovic, meanwhile, is trying to claim an 11th title in Melbourne to become the first player in history with 25 grand slam titles.
Sunday’s win allowed him to tie Roger Federer for the most quarter-final appearances by a man at the Australian Open, with 15.
"It wouldn't surprise me if Murray taps into the former colleagues that he works with," Millman added.
"Using the data and analysis they gave him. There was another tid bit not long ago I remember Novak Djokovic said: he got a lot of footage of Nick Kyrgios because he just couldn't read his serve. He got (Goran) Ivanisevic (former coach) and his whole team to go through all the tape to get a better read on it.
"I guarantee you with a player like Carlos Alcaraz they are forensically analysing every bit of material."
