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Bryan Brothers Capture 10th Title of Stellar Season
Oct. 28, 2007 - Bob and Mike Bryan became the first team to win at least 10 titles in a season since 1996 - when Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde captured 12 titles – at the Davidoff Swiss Indoors on Sunday.
The top-seeded Americans overwhelmed the first-time pairing of James Blake and Mark Knowles 6-1, 6-1 in just 43 minutes.
It was their third title in Basel, following victories in 2002 (d. Knowles-Nestor) and 2004 (d. Arnold Ker-Hood).
The Bryans didn’t allow their opponents any chance to establish themselves in the final. The pair ran through the first set in 21 minutes, with breaks of serve in the fourth and sixth games.
It was a similar story in the second set, as Blake and Knowles dropped their serve in the first, fifth and seventh games. The Bryans won all 12-service points in the second set - and 28 of 35 points overall.
The Stanford ATP Doubles Race winners have a 72-9-season record, which includes titles at the Australian Open, Las Vegas, Houston, Los Angeles, Washington and ATP Masters Series events in Miami, Monte-Carlo, Hamburg and Madrid.
The Bryan brothers are at No. 5 among all-time doubles title leaders with 43 trophies, after Woodbridge/Woodforde (61), Peter Fleming/John McEnroe and Bob Hewitt/Frew McMillan (57) and Sergio Casal/Emilio Sanchez (44).
Blake drops to 5-2 lifetime in ATP doubles finals, while Knowles falls to 46-34 in title-matches.
The Bryans earned the first prize of €45,750, while Blake and Knowles split €26,900 in prize money.
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WHAT THE PLAYERS SAID
Bob Bryan: “We feel great. That match was pretty unbelievable from our side of the court. We were on fire; reflexes, guessing right every shot. Mike was returning up a storm, I was serving great. It was one of those matches that you’re remember for all time. It was great having two friends on the other side of the net: it makes for great tennis. We had some incredible points, especially early in the match. James has supported us at Davis Cup many times; we have supported him on the sidelines many times. Mark Knowles is our best friend on the tour. It was a great atmosphere.”
Mike Bryan: “It was great, especially the way we played. I thought we played one of our best matches of the year. We knew we had to go for it against a good team that had been playing well all week. Everything dropped for us. It is a great feeling going into [Tennis Masters Cup] Shanghai, as I think we are playing our best tennis of the year. It feels good winning in Basel for a third time against two of our best friends.”
Blake: “Yes, they played as well I have seen them play in a while. It’s tough. I have seen them do it to a lot of guys in Davis Cup from the sidelines and know how little fun it is to face them. That’s the reason why they are the best doubles team in the world right now. [At the start of the week] I told Mark I had not won a lot of doubles matches this year, so I was glad to have him get me through a couple of wins. I had a great time and a lot of fun. Getting a chance to play with one of the best doubles players, really ever, was exciting for me. I learnt plenty and hopefully we’ll be better next time.”
Knowles: “The guys played too good obviously. They showed why they are the best team in the world. Credit to them, they played a great match. James and I had a great week. It was a pleasure playing with such a great player. Even though it didn’t go so well today, we did our best. Maybe in the future we can try and win another one.”
