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#1 · (Edited)
post news and articles
 
#2 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

McEnroe wins in doubles in return to ATP Tour
By JOSH DUBOW, AP Sports Writer
February 16, 2006

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- John McEnroe made a triumphant return to the ATP Tour, teaming with Jonas Bjorkman to win his first match in 12 years, 6-3, 6-3 over Wayne Arthurs and Stephen Huss on Wednesday night in a match that ended 19 minutes before McEnroe's 47th birthday.

"The old dog wanted to teach the young guys new tricks," McEnroe told the crowd before a birthday cake was wheeled out and the fans sang "Happy Birthday."

His hair grayer, his temper tamer and his opponents more powerful, McEnroe still showed off some of the skills that helped him win 77 career doubles titles as one of the game's greatest players.

He hit a forehand lob winner on break point to take a 2-1 lead in the second set and then held his serve at love. He held at love again at 4-3 before he and Bjorkman broke Arthurs' serve

McEnroe got a standing ovation and waved to the crowd of 7,158 as he was introduced at a tournament he won five times in singles and eight in doubles in his career.

He hit a volley winner on the first point of the match and held his serve all four times despite having less power than the other three players. He did serve up a 107 mph hour ace in the third game and poached a return by Huss for another volley winner to make it 3-2. His fastest serve of the match was 119 mph.

McEnroe and Bjorkman advanced to the quarterfinals where they will play Ashley Fisher and Tripp Phillips on Friday.

"One day, hopefully three to go," McEnroe said.

McEnroe became the first 46-year-old to win an ATP doubles match since Mansour Bahrami teamed with Cedric Pioline to do it in October 2002 in Basel, Switzerland.

McEnroe, who now plays on the Champions Tour for players 35 and older, has not played an ATP event since February 1994, when he and Boris Becker lost to Bjorkman and Jeremy Bates in the semifinals of an event at Rotterdam.

McEnroe, who won 10 of his 17 Grand Slam titles in doubles, is playing this event to try to give a boost to the declining state of doubles. It worked for one night because thousands of fans stayed almost until midnight to watch a first-round doubles match -- something that's usually unheard of.

The ATP has adopted a new doubles scoring system to help generate interest. There are no ad-games in the first two sets and if a match is tied at one set apiece, the teams will play a tiebreaker to decide the match. The first pair to get 10 points, with a two-point advantage, will win.

Bjorkman lost his singles match earlier to Dmitry Tursunov, who came back to win 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the second round.
 
#3 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

John McEnroe:
"It was nice. It’d been a long time, but it felt like I wasn’t playing. It’s nice to get back and open people’s eyes about doubles. We’ll open people’s eyes about that and I’ll keep playing with Jonas. He’s so solid and rises to the occasion, that’s the sign of a great player. I think we both rose to the occasion tonight and now there will be a let down and celebrate my birthday, and then we’ll have to regroup because then all of a sudden we’ll have higher expectations and maybe we can do this, so we have to make sure we’re ready for our match."

"I’d probably still be playing, but I’m not sure I’d be playing in tournaments. There’s a lot of things I said I wouldn’t do. I’m pretty much doing all the things I said I would never do. It’s good to still be part of the game as I look back and I think this is a very important time for tennis. We’ve got to bounce back and really go after fans moving into the next 10 years to hopefully be part of a real renaissance."

Jonas Bjorkman:
"I actually expected myself to be nervous when I was walking out there and feeling the atmosphere. I was feeling pretty good out there, but I wasn’t really sharp at the net, a little bit slow, and I felt like how can I feel this way when I have this opportunity, but everything got better and better and it’s awesome to have this opportunity to play with John and I’ve seen a lot of the forehand, cross court-angle, but it’s just great to be standing next to him when he hit that one. It was good quality out there."
 
#4 ·
#7 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

Bjorkman-McEnroe Pair to Victory in San Jose

Jonas Bjorkman and John McEnroe made the most of the American legend's
return to the ATP circuit, capturing the SAP Open title in the Match
Tie-break to cap off a perfect week in San Jose.

The wild card duo defeated the all-American squad of Paul Goldstein and Jim
Thomas in Sunday's final, 7-6(2), 4-6, 10-7 (Match TB).

McEnroe notched his 40th doubles win in the Bay Area tournament, and added a
record ninth event title. His last title in the Bay Area came with Mark
Woodforde in the 1988 San Francisco tournament.

It was the 47-year-old's 101st career ATP level final (77-23) and Bjorkman's
82nd final showing (43-38). McEnroe last appearead in an ATP final on Nov.
8, 1992, when he captured his 77th career title at the Paris-indoor with
brother Patrick.

Both teams advanced to the event final by securing semifinal wins in the
Match Tie-break; Bjorkman/McEnroe defeated Czech Jaroslav Levinsky and Swede
Robert Lindstedt 6-3, 4-6, 10-8 (Match TB), while Goldstein and Thomas
upended top seeds Simon Aspelin and Todd Perry 6-3, 6-7(4), 10-3 (Match TB).


McEnroe, who plays on the Merrill Lynch Tour of Champions, said: "I didn’t
know what was going to happen, but I felt good that first day, so I thought
we had a chance. The key to success is working together with your partner
and picking a good partner and I did that. We were able to sync our energy.
We pumped each other up. They beat the first and third seeds and we beat the
second and fourth, so we knew it was coming down to the end. Not
surprisingly it went to the final tie breaker, but the right team won.

"I’ve got to enjoy this for a little bit, so I’m going to take a few months
off and then go back to where I belong on the Seniors tour and then enjoy
this (win) and let them think about (this win) for a little and we’ll see
what develops."

Said Bjorkman: It’s always tough to come through and win a title like this,
but we’ve playing great from the start. We played better and better and had
to pick it up today even more, it looked like they were running away in the
second set, but we came out strong and won the tiebreak."
 
#9 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

midsommardagen said:
voted Jonas & Max
BTW, Jonas's son is named Max, right?
Yes, he is ;) I also think sometimes that it´s quite funny...
 
#10 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

McEnroe rolls back the years to take doubles title
Mon Feb 20, 2006 5:54 AM GMT

By Matthew Cronin
SAN JOSE Feb 19 (Reuters) - John McEnroe capped his comeback to the ATP Tour with a surprise doubles victory in the SAP Open final on Sunday, the veteran partnering Swede Jonas Bjorkman to a 7-6 4-6 10-7 win over Paul Goldstein and Jim Thomas.
Appearing in his first ATP tournament since 1994, the 47-year-old American displayed plenty of the trademark deft touches that once made him the number one player in the world.
"I'm surprised that it went to the final tiebreaker, but the right team won," McEnroe told reporters after the match.
"Jonas carried the weight. When I came here, I thought we could either lose in the first round or win the whole thing."
McEnroe's 78th doubles title came 15 years after his last, won with brother Patrick at the Paris Indoors in November 1992.
While McEnroe sports a full head of grey hair and has slowed his pace around the court, the seven-times grand slam champion stood firm against the weight of his opponent's heavy shots.
"I'm not surprised," Bjorkman said.
"He's so smart. He plays with his head. What really impressed me was how he managed to take the power of the younger guys so well."
Although he has a busy schedule of television broadcasting and senior events this year, McEnroe did not rule out playing another ATP tournament.
"Maybe I can find some of the younger American guys to play with," he said.
 
#11 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

from his homepage:

2006-02-20 A legend returned

John McEnroe and I won the doubles title in San Jose against Paul Goldstein och Jim Thomas with 7-6(2), 4-6, 10-7. It has been a true pleasure to team up with the legend McEnroe the past week. He is still in impressing shape, should easily be ranked top 50 as a doubles player. In the seventh game of the first set in the final, he lost his serve for the first time during the whole tournament. After the second set, it felt like they might run away with the victory, but we went ahead to 5-1 in the decisive tiebreak and could secure the title. McEnroe finished it off with a backhand volley. A great comeback on the ATP tour by a legend, and a great experience and honour for me!
 
#12 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

http://www.jonasbjorkman.com/

2006-03-06 Things to practice
I haven´t been serving as good as I should lately, and that has influenced my game in a bad way. I will work hard to improve my serving before Indian Wells on Thursday. I´ll also try to increase my speed, and practice together with Max Mirnyi as much as possible, because we haven´t really been playing at our very best since US Open last year. Now, we will try a few things and practice against other teams in order to regain our best game. If I, and we, just will win a few matches in a row, we´ll be back on track again.

2006-03-06 Impressive Nadal
Roger Federer had one set and one break up on Rafael Nadal in the final in Dubai, but he still didn´t manage to equalize to 2-2 in matches between them. Nadal won 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 and has 3-1 up on Federer. Truly impressive, although I think that Nadal has become a mental as much as a physical opponent for Federer. This is a great outcome for the sport of tennis, with two really strong players fighting for the no. 1 spot, and with a bunch of sharp outsiders just behind them.

2006-03-06 Borg world news again
Björn Borg will always be a world class name. That was obvious when the news broke that he´s about to sell his Wimbledon trophys later this summer. Instantly I read about it in newspapers in Las Vegas and saw it on ESPN. I hope that somebody in Sweden will place a bid at the auction so that the trophys can remain in the country.

2006-03-06 Surreal Las Vegas
Nothing compares with Las Vegas. It´s a surreal city, like a neon mirage in the dessert, created around gambling, fascinating at night, not quite so fascinating in daylight. If you notice any difference. If you´re mainly indoors, in the gambling halls, there are no clocks on the walls telling you the time so you don´t know if it´s day or night. It´s like a world of its own, with its own, or none, sense of time. During the tournament in Las Vegas, we were quite a few players that tried our luck at the tables: the Bryans, Robert Lindstedt, Malisse, Sanguinetti, quite a few. I won a little every other day, but the bank is of course the big winner all the time. They say that 30 000 people comes in from Los Angeles to gamble every weekend. In the long run, this environment gets a bit tiresome with all the noise and sounds and cheering. It feels good to have travelled three hours in a car to Indian Wells.

2006-03-06 It´s my own fault
I should have done better in the singles in Las Vegas. The win against Gael Monfils in the first round was promising, I felt good and did also own the match against Ivo Karlovic for a long time. He´s diffcult to play against, serve and volley and not much else, but all of a sudden he lands a winner from nowhere. It´s easy to lose your own rhythm against that kind of players. All of a sudden I missed a few easy points, and at the same time he managed to land a couple of returns, and then everything turned around. I really felt that I controlled the match, but fumbled it away. I was very disappointed afterwards. I have to minimize my unforced errors in the future, then I have the capacity to win more matches. My win against Monfils proved that.

2006-03-06 McEnroe still attracts
I think that John McEnroe suprised many by beeing in such a good shape and beeing able to compete so well on this level. It was an awsome experience to get to play with him for a week in San Jose, and sharing a title with him will be something to remember when I look back on my career. I mean, previously I had just won AGAINST him... in 1994 when I and Jeremy Bates beat McEnroe and Becker. Now, I´ve also won WITH him. McEnroe still draws the crowds. We had 8 000 in the audience every night in San Jose, when it normally would have been 2 000.

2006-03-06 A tragedy for Thomas
Thomas Johanssons unfortunate eye injury feels tragic. The other season he injured his knee when he was heading for the top of the list, and now his eye just when he was about to establish himself in the top 10 after a fantastic year in 2005. Instead, he is forced to rest a few months, and his sight might never be totally recovered. I suffer with him.
 
#13 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

:awww: Thanks Peggy. Jonas is such a softie. (Like a teddy bear. He's the best :yeah: )
 
#14 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

Article from LA Times
Putting a Charge in It
Bjorkman is one of the few dedicated serve-volleyers left on tour
Some advice for tennis fans at Indian Wells for the start of the men's tournament in the Pacific Life Open today: Get a draw sheet, find the name Jonas Bjorkman and head out to the back courts.

That's where the Swedish journeyman will be, where he has been for most of his 16-year career, other than in 1997, when he stunned everybody by going 71-26 and finished the season ranked fourth in the world.

ADVERTISEMENTHe is no longer young, no longer a frequent sighting on the big courts with the luxury suites and the people sipping chardonnay in their designer Filas.

He is also no less entertaining and no less worth watching. At 33 — he will turn 34 on March 23 — he is the third-oldest regular participant on the men's tour, after Andre Agassi, one month from his 36th birthday, and Wayne Arthurs, a week from his 35th.

As much as his age, Bjorkman's style of play makes him a tennis dinosaur.

Bjorkman follows his serve to the net, a technique last seen commonly in the era of Jack Kramer, wooden rackets and long pants. Now, in men's tennis, players go to the net only when struck by diving birds that leave them dazed and disoriented.

It isn't totally their fault. They are now asked to play with balls that weigh as much as baseballs, fluffed up like a Don King hairdo and squished into slow courts of sandy, gooey compositions. A game not long ago played mostly on slick grass has become the Pro Swamplands Tour.

Among the men who play regularly, a few renegades still try to attack behind the serve — Taylor Dent, Tim Henman, Ivo Karlovic, Mario Ancic and Arthurs, as well as Bjorkman's current doubles partner, Max Mirnyi.

Bjorkman has never quit trying to serve and volley. He has reasons, and a sense of humor about it.

"I'd look pretty stupid if I stayed back at the baseline after hitting the kind of serve I do," he says.

He is also serious about what the game has become.

"It is sad to see the game go this way," he said. "When I'm done, I won't watch two guys stay back at the baseline and slug it out."

The true artists of the last serve-and-volley era, Stefan Edberg, John McEnroe, Pete Sampras, Patrick Rafter and Boris Becker, are gone.

Bjorkman has persevered at what he does because it is what he knows and what he likes. It has also meant that he has had most of his success in doubles, where you'd better know how to play at the net or you'll lose.

Last month, the Swedish dinosaur shared one side of the net with an American dinosaur, McEnroe. The result was a stunning tournament doubles title at San Jose.

The tournament director, Bill Rapp, had been working on getting the still-proficient McEnroe, now 47, back into an ATP main draw. He identified Bjorkman, with his 44 doubles titles and eight Grand Slam doubles titles, as a worthy partner.

McEnroe said yes, the two quickly clicked, and the San Jose championship was theirs.

"He is a true legend," Bjorkman said. "We see doubles the same way. It worked right away."

Like all so-called doubles specialists, Bjorkman bristles a bit at the label. He has been No. 4 in the world, seen the bright lights of the big-stadium center courts, been to a U.S. Open semifinal and a Wimbledon quarterfinal.

"It is still fun," he says. "It still feels the same when you get out on a center court. I still get the same chills as I did when I was 20. And in some ways, it is even better because now, if you are successful, it is so much bigger because the fields are so much better.

"I've been lucky. I haven't had a serious injury since 1990 [a year before he had a world ranking], and here I am, still trying. I never thought I'd be playing at 34."

He hasn't finished a year out of the top 75 since 1993, has played in 48 of the last 49 Grand Slam tournaments, has made more than $12 million in prize money, entered last week's Tennis Channel Open in Las Vegas at No. 64 — he's No. 68 now — and has never stopped moving forward, in his goals and on his serve.

He lists among his highlights his 1-0 record against his friend and retired countryman, Edberg, winner of six Grand Slam singles titles, whom he beat in a third-round match at the U.S. Open.

"When I see him, I always remind him that I dominated him in singles," Bjorkman says. "He, of course, reminds me of the 40 or so practice matches we played, where he won them all."
 
#16 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

from Jonas homepage

2006-03-13
Surprisingly bad


I lost to the Australian Open finalist Marcos Bagdatis in the second round in Indian Wells, 4-6, 3-6, on Sunday. I´ve played really good tennis the last few days, have hit the ball perfectly, but I lost that feeling today, and just played bad: to many easy mistakes; to many ups and downs when I was serving. Very disappointing. Max Mirnyi and I are playing against Jose Acasuso and Sebastian Prieto, Argentina, on Tuesday.

2006-03-13
Desert storm


Strangely bad weather here in Indian Wells lately. Normally it´s warm and pleasant, but now we have had the worst storm in 50 years with a lot of rain and temperatures down to 7 degrees celsius, which has distracted and delayed the schedule. The surrounding mountains usually keeps this kind of weather away, but once the storm found its way over the mountains, it seems that it can´t find the way out again. The mountains are covered with snow!

2006-03-13
Promising victory


I beat Christophe Rochus, finallist in Rotterdam, with 6-2, 3-6, 6-2, in the first round in Indian Wells. I´ve practised 10 hours Monday to Wednesday the past week, and I´ve started to hit the ball really well again, found that feeling.
 
#17 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

from JBs Homepage
2006-03-17
Semi final in Indian Wells


Max Mirnyi and I have advanced to the semi final in Indian Wells. We beat Zimonjic and Santoro in a quarter final that became as close as I had anticipated: 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 10-5. Again we proved an ability to win the really decisive points. There will be two top semi finals. Simon Aspelin and the Bryan brothers in one of them, and Max and I against Mark Knowles and Daniel Nestor in the other.

2006-03-16
QF next


It starts to look good. Max Mirnyi and I played really well when beating Justin Gimelstob and Stephen Huss in the second round in Indian Wells, 7-5, 6-1. We will now face Fabrice Santoro and Nenad Zimonjic in the quarter final. They are both ranked within top 12 in the world.

2006-03-15
Close victory


Max Mirnyi and I beat Sebastian Prieto and Jose Acasuso in the first round of the doubles in Indian Wells, 6-7, 7-6, 10-3. A tough match, but we played our best tennis when we needed it the most: in the second set tiebreak that we won 7-0, and in the decisive super tiebreak. I hope that this victory can inspire us to reach our true capacity. We will play against Justin Gimelstob and Stephen Huss on Wednesday.
 
#18 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

I was so wrapped up in Vinciguerra/Marach/Koubek this week that I forgot about-
a) Indian Wells
b) the doubles draw there.

Those are 4 excellent teams! But I hope and expect the Americans to go down :D LOL! :hatoff:
 
#19 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

Noone should ever ask me for betting advice.
:haha:
Semifinals
(1)Bob Bryan/Mike Bryan (USA) d. Simon Aspelin/Todd Perry (SWE/AUS) 7-5 6-2
(3)Mark Knowles/Daniel Nestor (BAH/CAN) d. (2)Jonas Bjorkman/Max Mirnyi (SWE/BLR) 7-6(5) 6-1
 
#20 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

from Jonas homepage
2006-03-20
Promising defeat


Max Mirnyi and I lost the semi final in Indian Wells against Knowles and Nestor, just like last year, 7-6, 6-1. Hopefully that will mean, just like last year, that Max and I move on to win the title in Miami.
This was a well played match, and much closer than it might seem. We just didn´t manage to get the decisive points on our side. They have won here three times before, and it seems that they have that little extra luck that is necessary to win here, besides that they are one of the best and most consistent teams in the world, of course.
No breaks in the first set - although we had four chances. The tiebreak was also close. Our only mistake came on the set point, when we made the wrong tactical move. We got ourselves five chances to break their serve in the second set, but it just couldn´t be done today. But we have played much better than in a long time this week, really working to improve a few details in our game. I think we will be even better next week, and that our déjà vu lost here will be followed by a déjà vu win in Miami!
 
#21 ·
Re: Articles, News ...

from JB's Homepage
2006-03-24
A title to defend


Rain has delayed the schedule in Miami. Max Mirnyi and I will probably enter the tournament on Saturday against Lopez and Verdasco. We have a title to defend from last year, and it would be great if we could do that and capture our first major title this year. It looks good, we played much better in Indian Wells the other week than earlier this year.

2006-03-24
No energy left


I am starting to feel really worn out from travelling and playing almost every day since December 27. During this period I have just been back home for two days. I lost against the young Czech Robin Vik yesterday, 6-4, 6-4, and felt early on that I just didn´t´have any energy left, even though I hit the ball well.

2006-03-24
Perfect set up


It will be great to come home after Miami and have two weeks without any matches before Monte Carlo Open, and then another two weeks off after the tournament, before I am going to Rome and Hamburg, then resting one more week before the French Open. That mix of relaxation and building up new strength will be perfect for me before I go into the grass tournaments. I am looking forward to it already!

2006-03-24
No McEnroe in Båstad


There were som hopes that John McEnroe would come to play the doubles in Båstad, Sweden, this summer. But that will not happen. He will work for TV during Wimbledon and feels that he can´t get enough time to prepare, especially since Båstad is on clay, which never was McEnroes home turf so to speak. The possibility that we will play another tournament together later this year is still there. If so, most likely in the USA.
 
#22 · (Edited)
Re: Articles, News ...

JB writes a lot these days :)
2006-03-28
QF in Miami


Max Mirnyi and I are through to the quarter final in Miami, after beating Garcia and Etlis 6-3, 6-2. We are a hot item now! At least it feels like the practise time we got together in Indian Wells meant a lot. Especially tactically: we could take about how we shall act in different situations, and try a few new things. We have found our way back to our own game, and we are playing our best tennis of the year. Our returns are good, we are really strong in our own serve, we play much more aggressively, and dare to risk more. We have found a way of playing that suits us, also considering the new supertiebreak system. We will play against skillful Damm and Stepanek next.

2006-03-28
A good start


Max Mirnyi and I got a flying start of the tournament in Miami, when we beat Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez, 6-1, 6-1 in the first round. Feels god to start up in such a convincing way. We will play against Gaston Etlis and Martin Garcia in the next round.

2006-03-28
Hawkeye in focus


Everybody is talking about the "linesman" Hawkeye here in Miami: a filmcamera linked to a big flatscreen TV that shows wether the ball was in or out. If they are uncertain, the players can request the point to be rerun on the flatscreen, and everybody in the arena can see where the ball touched down. Its a good thought. An extra dimension for the fans, and no more room for hesitation or arguments among the players. Hopefully this possibility will be availiable also for players outside the centrecourt.
 
#23 ·
This stuff always freaks me out:tape::
2006-03-24
No energy left
I am starting to feel really worn out from travelling and playing almost every day since December 27. During this period I have just been back home for two days. I lost against the young Czech Robin Vik yesterday, 6-4, 6-4, and felt early on that I just didn´t´have any energy left, even though I hit the ball well.
But, I'm really glad he and Max are doing well in doubles :D :hatoff:
Not long til Max is back in Australia:D:D:D
 
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#24 ·
more from JB
2006-03-31
Semi in Miami


Max Mirnyi and I are through to the semis (for the second time in a row) in Miami after beating tough opponents Radek Stepanek and Martin Damm, 6-4, 6-3. We work very well together now, everythings runs smoothly and confident. Our goal is to defend our title from last year, and to win our second title in 2006. We will probably face Bob and Mike Bryan in the final, if we make it there.
 
#25 ·
Miami BJORKMAN-MIRNYI/Bryan-Bryan
6-4, 6-4

An interview with:

JONAS BJORKMAN and MAX MIRNYI

THE MODERATOR: They're the first team to repeat here since the Woodies, who won three years in a row from '95 to '97.

Q. You'll be back, right?

JONAS BJORKMAN: For a three-peat, hopefully (smiling). You won it three out of four years.

MAX MIRNYI: Yes.

Q. Can you talk about today's match and what went right for you.

JONAS BJORKMAN: We played great the whole tournament, actually. We've been playing very consistent, very solid. We had maybe not the perfect start of the year. We won some matches but we didn't maybe play the way we wanted to. We did some adjustments after losing in Vegas, did some extra practice in Indian Wells, and made the semis, which was good, then we started to get some improvement.

This week we played exactly the way we wanted to. I think best tournament performance we've done.

Q. But specifically today, what shots were working? What did you do well?

JONAS BJORKMAN: No, just tactically we played smart. We made a lot of balls back in play. You know, we were very aggressive at the net. There was not really one particular shot. We just in general, in doubles, there's so many shots that you need to have right.

We played our best at the right times when we needed it.

Q. You were one-and-four against them going in, according to the record.

MAX MIRNYI: Okay.

JONAS BJORKMAN: Yeah.

Q. Did you have a different approach going in today? Obviously, they've been successful against you.

MAX MIRNYI: Well, it's only the record states from when Jonas and I played together as a team. But Jonas, individual, and so did I played them so many times. I wasn't even aware of the record.

We knew that they are a good team and we were just approaching this match with a lot of respect, yet we knew we were capable of beating them because we've done it so many times - individually and as a team at the French Open.

Like Jonas said, we've worked on a few things that we needed to improve based on the beginning of the year and we're happy with how we were doing it throughout the whole tournament. Today was just another good display of us, how we want to play doubles. We're happy that we're capable of executing what the game plan was.

Q. Jonas, you just turned 34.

JONAS BJORKMAN: Yes.

Q. I guess you're the oldest male singles and doubles player, right?

JONAS BJORKMAN: No, not in doubles. That's for sure.

Q. Playing both.

JONAS BJORKMAN: Playing both?

THE MODERATOR: Probably. Highest ranked.

Q. Martina tomorrow is in the finals and she's 49. Any comments on that?

JONAS BJORKMAN: I'm not gonna be around that long, guarantee you that (laughing).

Q. Sure of that?

JONAS BJORKMAN: Absolutely. I have so many things I'm looking forward to after the game of tennis. I mean, tennis is a sport that I love so much, and I'm going to miss it once I decide to step aside and do something else.

But tennis is not everything. I have a great family, I will be around a lot more. And having a new situation of doing a lot of things around the tennis and still be part of tennis but doing other stuff.

Q. Have you announced any plans?

JONAS BJORKMAN: No, no, no, not really. I mean, you know, the way we're playing right now, I have a feeling why stop when you're so successful.

We had a great rivalry with Mike and Bob last year going head-to-head all the way to the last two tournaments, who was gonna be the No. 1. Singles, I managed to come back after dropping out of the hundred for the first time in 12, 13 years, won a title at the end of the year.

So I feel, you know, my motivation is still out there to practice, enjoy it, and still do the traveling. I'm going to try to continue. And with the partnership with Max now, I'm enjoying it that much. I definitely get more inspired.

Q. Do you feel like with the no ad scoring that it's changing your play calling early in the games? If you're serving 15-30 second serve, that can quickly become triple game point. Now, with no ad in doubles, do you feel that as a team you guys are calling different plays earlier specifically because of the no ad pressure on your games when you're trying to hold?

MAX MIRNYI: I think more than anything, it just makes a team be much more aware, less breathing room, if you can say it in that way. You still sort of go with your strength and try to attack opponents' weaknesses. You just realize that the game is shorter, and you try to just be maybe this much more alert to try to avoid unforced errors.

Still, you know, 15-30 is 15-30. You're serving to the ad court and you want to go maybe with your best serve to go to the opponent's weakest return. The elements of the game haven't changed because you still have to hit your first volley. You're still hitting tennis shots. It's just it's a little bit compact now.

Q. Do you feel as a team you've been broken more this year as a result of no ad. Do feel you guys have been holding reasonably well? Ultimately, today, obviously, there was several no ad situations. Couple key ones in the second set when you were able to get out of games at 15-30, 40-30. That was obviously critical. You could have been down 5-1 in the second set possibly with the way that was shifting. That's unbelievable, instead of a 4-All, 5-All holding until a tie-breaker situation.

MAX MIRNYI: I hear what you're saying, but I'm convinced that over the course of the year, or as long as we're going to keep this format - hopefully this is going to be the future of tennis - the better team will still win. Everybody's put in the same boat and everybody's dealing with the same problems.

You know, it will take some time to adjust, but still at the end of the year, the best eight teams will be the best eight teams. The quicker you can adjust, the better you're going to be. I think in the long run it's still going to even out.

Q. Jonas, apologies if you've already answered this question, but one Grand Slam, two Masters Series into the year, how do you feel the whole doubles situation is now? You were pretty outspoken about it the end of last year. Are you happier now?

JONAS BJORKMAN: I think it's going in the right direction. I think everyone is putting a great effort into talk positive about it, we have for so many years. Tournament directors just going after it, being, you know, talking shit about it all the time. Now it's quiet and more positive feedback from it. You know, these two weeks, with Indian Wells, Key Biscayne, it's a lot harder maybe to have the doubles matches on center court that we would like to see a lot more, obviously. But it's going in the right direction. We have Stanford coming in, supporting doubles, which is great. So it's much better.

Q. The Bryan brothers the other day when I asked the same question said, you know, they could foresee a time not far off where doubles players would be basically looking for another job, which is a pretty bleak outlook. Have things improved from that now?

JONAS BJORKMAN: Well, it's hard for me to say because I play singles and doubles so it's hard to answer that question because, you know, for me, I'm always feeling that I'm in the game because I play both. It might be harder for only pure doubles guys, how they sort of adjust to the new format and what they've been under, going through the last year or two.

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#26 ·
more from Jonas:
2006-04-02
We won in Miami


It feels just super great to wake up as champion of Miami! Max Mirnyi and I beat Bob and Mike Bryan on Saturday in the final, 6-4, 6-4. We played absolutely fantastic tennis again. Just great! This is the best tournament that Max and I have played together. We haven´t lost a set. We took the initiative immediately in the final, forced them to errors, and it felt like we were one step ahead all the time. Great to defend the title from last year. I´ll go back home to relax and rebuild for the clay season now. I couldn´t have entered those preparations with a better feling!

2006-04-01
All the way in Miami


Max Mirnyi and I are through to the final in Miami on Saturday after beating Paul Hanley and Kevin Ullyett in the semifinal, 6-3, 7-6 (7-1). We played very, very well again, were one step ahead all the time, and we haven´t yet lost a set. All together this year we have 15-3 in matches. The final against Bob and Mike Bryan will be very interesting. They need to play their best tennis to touch us now! We want to defend our title from 2005.
 
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