[Deboogle!.]

Mike these guys are awesome but I DO NOT WANT TO KNOW what Andy and James did...

[Tytta!.]

Deb's back.

[kaylee]

Hmmmm I don't want to know either but I can imagine, poor John!

[Björki]

I love their blogs

next one:

Wednesday, November 28, 2007 - 9 p.m.

It could go down as an all-time low in the world of officiating. Fortunately, there were no genuine line judges involved. But Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish, hang your heads in shame!

At practice today, Robby played a couple of sets against James and unfortunately I have to say that a bad call probably cost Robby a set. Mike and Mardy were both calling James' baseline but screwed up an 'out' call because they were text messaging at the time. Robby hit a ball that was just a little long and James played it. The rally continued for another 10-15 shots and Robby eventually won it. But then Mike and Mardy suggested to James that the earlier ball had indeed been out. James, who didn't get a good look at the ball, ran with the idea and that gave him the break. I don't think either Mardy or Mike would get hired to call lines at Challenger level after that performance. Two of them were calling the line and they both missed it!

But Robby took it like a man. I would have broken a couple of racquets. But after calling the lines we were all ready to give credit to the real line judges. The balls really going whizzing fast out there and it's tough to make right calls all the time - even when you're not text messaging



Oh, in the photo above, that's Mike practicing to lift a giant version of the Davis Cup. If we win the Cup he'll carry it all the way back to Camarillo!

John Isner's been pretty quiet and obedient today, playing water boy and towel boy. But you've got to feel a little sorry for the big man because no-one wants to hit with him. As Andy says: "The Russians don't have any 6' 10'' goofy guys on their team, so why would we want to hit with you?" It's all said in good humor, of course.



You see the photo of Mike, Mardy and me with all the Christmas shopping bags? Well, after the Nike guys went to the Nike store yesterday and came back bragging about all the stuff they got, we called Andrea Swick from adidas and she was nice enough to hook us up with a nice-size budget at the adidas store, where we did some serious damage. We spent about an hour Christmas shopping for family and friends and also picked up a few goodies for ourselves.

Here's another photo that shows just how large our Davis Cup team is for the final. We're standing in the lobby of the hotel next to the Christmas tree.



We have a masseuse, a stringer, trainer, body guard and three coaches - Jay Berger, Brian Barker and John Roddick - assisting captain Patrick McEnroe. There are two doctors - David Dines and his son Josh - three administrative people taking care of all the logistics, four practice partners and four team members.

Our huge squad pretty much takes up two whole floors of the hotel. We have a room for training, a room for massage, a huge suite for a team room with a poker table, flat screen tv and a big eating room, which always has a well-stocked buffet. And the Russians? They have a McDonald's across the street.

Today we practiced early after leaving the hotel at 8.30 am. On the way to the courts we drove past a huge mural of the Davis Cup team on a 30-story building. To see yourself that size is amazing. Everyone here in Portland seems to recognize the team. They are pretty low-key people and it's not a busy-city atmosphere. There's lots mountain, trees and running water. It's more like a running town. But this week we've turned it into a tennis town.

Tomorrow we have the official draw ceremony at noon and then after that we'll be going into lockdown. Patrick wants us to start focusing fully on the start of play on Friday. But we'll still get word out to you through the blog. Just don't tell Patrick.

Mike will check in with you tomorrow.

Bob.

[ataptc]

Hilarious blog entries

Can't wait

[Tytta!.]

Originally Posted by Björki

At practice today, Robby played a couple of sets against James and unfortunately I have to say that a bad call probably cost Robby a set. Mike and Mardy were both calling James' baseline but screwed up an 'out' call because they were text messaging at the time. Robby hit a ball that was just a little long and James played it. The rally continued for another 10-15 shots and Robby eventually won it. But then Mike and Mardy suggested to James that the earlier ball had indeed been out. James, who didn't get a good look at the ball, ran with the idea and that gave him the break. I don't think either Mardy or Mike would get hired to call lines at Challenger level after that performance. Two of them were calling the line and they both missed it!

But Robby took it like a man. I would have broken a couple of racquets. But after calling the lines we were all ready to give credit to the real line judges. The balls really going whizzing fast out there and it's tough to make right calls all the time - even when you're not text messaging

Originally Posted by Björki

Our huge squad pretty much takes up two whole floors of the hotel. We have a room for training, a room for massage, a huge suite for a team room with a poker table, flat screen tv and a big eating room, which always has a well-stocked buffet. And the Russians? They have a McDonald's across the street.

Originally Posted by Björki

Tomorrow we have the official draw ceremony at noon and then after that we'll be going into lockdown. Patrick wants us to start focusing fully on the start of play on Friday. But we'll still get word out to you through the blog. Just don't tell Patrick.

Thanks Peggy The guys are so funny

[Björki]

next one

Hey everyone, Mike here.



After a late night of poker, and knowing that the draw ceremony was not until noon, the team enjoyed a sleep in this morning. Things went pretty late the night before and I'm pleased to report that Bob was the big winner at the poker table, which is great for me because we share everything.
I'd like to tell you he won through skill or because he had a great poker face but in reality it was pure luck: He had two pocket aces and then got two more out of the flop to make four aces. It was a big hand: John Isner had two kings and went 'all in', and Robby Ginepri thought he was in good shape with a straight. So Bob came out the big winner. I think Andy and James ended up about even on the night.

I think it was a good draw for us to see Andy scheduled to play first tomorrow. He's just the guy to come out firing and take us to a 1-0 lead and put us on a roll. Today he and James just practiced for about 40 minutes to keep fresh. And they were goofing off for most of the session.

It was a closed practice but my dad brought a lot of kids from a high school to watch. You may find this interesting given that we passed out 100 tickets to friends and family, but neither my dad or mom will be in the stadium Saturday when we play one of the biggest matches of our lives. Mom is just too nervous and will be watching with her family in San Diego. Dad also gets nervous watching and is flying out of Portland Saturday to emcee a Pete Sampras-Todd Martin exhibition in Chicago. He'll fly back Saturday night to watch the singles on the final day.

Also, I think dad may be a little worried about jinxing us. The only Davis Cup match he's watched us play was in Carson, when we took our only loss at Davis Cup level to Ancic and Ljubicic. It's funny he won't watch because he's so fanatical. When we played in Europe during the indoor season he'd be up at 3 a.m. watching point by point on live scores on the ATP web site, checking out all the stats. When we got home we all had jet lag trying to adjust back to normal time again.



Today we also did some rehearsing with the latest member of the Bryan Brothers Band, Mardy Fish. His strength is country and we worked on a few songs today. Mardy will make some cameos with the band next year. Tonight we'll have a low-key dinner, just with the team members. We'll shut it down pretty early.

Tomorrow you'll probably only spot Bob and I cheering from the bench for the first set or so. Our normal routine is to support whomever is playing the first match for an hour and then head back to the hotel. Don't think for a minute that we don't want to cheer on Andy and James. But they know that sitting court side for six or seven hours of tennis can be tiring and make you stiff. And we want our legs fresh for the doubles on Saturday. The guys understand that and know that on Sunday we'll be there at the side of the court cheering every point.

We're all excited about Day 1 on Friday. We can't wait for it to begin.

Bob will post tomorrow night. Wish the team luck.

Mike

[Björki]

Friday, November 30, 2007 - 4 p.m. PT



Hey everyone, it's Bob.

After all the practice and anticipation, Friday has arrived and it's time to play ball.

During breakfast, the whole team seemed very relaxed and we all told jokes and talked football. Very seldom do we talk about tennis or the matches at hand. Everybody knows the job that they have to do and there isn't anyone on this team that has ever given less than 110% in a Davis Cup match.

Two hours before the matches this morning the stadium was already electric. It was pretty cool that people showed up early to see us warmup. During the introductions, we were greeted by a drum line and fireworks. It was impossible not to get goose bumps when our names were called and the Portland crowd roared out their support. I saw a ton of familiar faces in the crowd as I walked to the bench to join our team. From Stan Smith and his son Ramsey, to Ricky Leach, our childhood idol, the stands at Memorial Coliseum are littered with family, friends, former Davis Cup players, and legends.

Mike and I watched one set of Andy's match from the sidelines and just finished watching Andy put the first point in the books from here at the hotel. We are T-minus 20 hours until the doubles match and our feet are up and we are conserving every bit of energy so we can explode on Saturday.

Well, let's hope Jimmy B can get us up 2-0. He's been absolutely torching the ball in practice and is capable of playing some insane tennis.

Alright guys, that's all for today. I'm about to go grab a massage from our man, Cicero.

It's our turn tomorrow.

Talk to you soon, Bob

[Tytta!.]

Thanks Peggy
Let's finish the job today, guys.

[ataptc]

[Björki]

which time (CET) starts the doubles?
same time the singles started yesterday?

[Tytta!.]

Half an hour before yesterday's matches, Peggy.

[snaillyyy]

Let's go guys!~

[Deboogle!.]

9:30pm CET

BOB AND MIKE

here are a few pics from the week

[Björki]

lets go twins