Big Surprises in Men’s Doubles—Nathan’s Blog
By: Nathan M. Cuny
The weekend of November 25-27 is resulting in some big changes in doubles tennis, from Barclays semi-finals knockouts to team changes. One of the biggest surprises of the weekend came on Saturday when the No.1doubles team Bob Bryan/Mike Bryan was ousted by the No.3 team of Max Mirnyi/Daniel Nestor. Mirnyi and Nestor face the No.8 doubles team of Mariusz Fyrstenberg/Marcin Matkowski for the Barclays title at 3:30 PM Sunday the 27th.
Top seeds and three time ATP World Tour finals champions Bob and Mike Bryan were defeated 6⁶-7, 4-6 by Mirnyi and Nestor in a matter of one hour and nineteen minutes. Mirnyi and Nestor won an astounding 33 out of 35 first service points. In an interview following the success of their match, Mirnyi stated, “We know it won’t happen every time. We knew we had to serve well against Bob and Mike, so we went after our serves and attacked any first volley above the net.”
Bob and Mike Bryan lost the tie break in the first set. The second set was closed after Mike made three errors at the net, giving Nestor finishing room with their 12th strong ace. With Bob and Mike Bryan’s Saturday loss they finished with a season record of 60-16 and remain No.1.
The No.4 Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes made it to the semifinals but lost to Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski. Frystenberg/Matkowski were victorious 6-4, 4-6, 10-6 in one hour and thirty-nine minutes. After Bhupathi and Paes’ loss in the semifinals, the teammates announced they will not return to a partnership in the following season. There is a reason for separation far beyond Barclays.
The well renowned IndoPak express team is also following in accord with the Indian Express. Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi will no longer be a team once they leave London. The reason both teams are breaking up is in preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games.
Rohan Bopanna and Mahesh Bhupathi are pairing up for 2012 in hopes of increasing the Indians bid to compete at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Despite the sudden break up and both players doing so well with their soon to be former teammates, there is no bitterness between them.
Thursday’s match, where IndoPak Express lost against Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski, was the last game Bopanna and Qureshi will play together in possibly a very long time. Following the match, Qureshi commented on the breakup of the team, stating, “I respect Rohan’s decision to play with Mahesh, with a view to competing at the Olympics. I hope I will be there too.” It’s good to know they end their partnership on friendly terms and in the name of their sport. Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi pairs with Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands for 2012. Leander Paes is expected to pair with Lucasz Kubot of Poland.
Share this article:
Follow 10SBALLS.COM on:
10sBalls Top Stories
- No Key Biscayne, No Problem; New Site, Same Great Miami Open Tennis Event
- 10SBALLS SHARES FAVORITE EPA TENNIS PHOTOS Of 2018
- THE PERFECT HOLIDAY GIFT FOR ANY TENNIS PLAYER & FAN
- ATP MEN’S TENNIS • WILL IT MOVE FROM LONDON TO MANCHESTER OR TOKYO OR SINGAPORE? OR TURIN?
- ALIX RAMSAY WRITES TO “TENNIS SANTA CLAUS” WITH HER WISHES • ANDY MURRAY!
- CALIFORNIA CHAMPIONSHIPS AT THE JACK KRAMER CLUB – DECEMBER 15 TO 22 2018 • UTR • ORACLE • AND AN AWESOME NEW TENNIS EVENT
- 10sBalls.com Shares Alix Ramsay’s Rambling On About Tennis and The Holidays
- ROGER FEDERER JOINED BY RAFA NADAL FOR THE 2019 LAVER CUP FESTIVITIES IN GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
- TENNIS PLAYERS’ UNION – IS IT NEEDED? BY MARK WINTERS
- Tennis News: Wilson’s Revolution Is Here – THE CLASH
- ROTTERDAM TENNIS TOURNEY DIRECTOR RICHARD KRAJICEK ANNOUNCES DAVID GOFFIN TO PLAY IN 2019 ABN AMRO
- JELENA VEMIC’S PHOTO GALLERY
- TENNIS NEWS FROM LONDON • 10SBALLS REPORTS ON THE LAWN TENNIS WRITERS HOLIDAY LUNCHEON AT WIMBLEDON’S DEBENTURE CLUB
- 10sBalls.com Shares a Great Gift For A Tennis Player – The Functional Tennis Match Journal
- BNP PARIBAS TENNIS OPEN NAMED 2018 WTA PREMIER MANDATORY TOURNAMENT OF THE YEAR FOR FIFTH STRAIGHT YEAR
In Case You Missed It
EUGENIE BOUCHARD NAMED 2018 TENNIS CANADA FEMALE PLAYER OF THE YEAR / EUGENIE BOUCHARD NOMMÉE JOUEUSE DE L’ANNÉE 2018 DE TENNIS CANADA
Tennis Canada announced on Wednesday that Eugenie Bouchard is the winner of the 2018 Excellence Awards in the Female Player of the Year and Singles Player of the Year categories.
TENNIS NEWS • CALIFORNIA CHAMPIONSHIPS • TOMMY HAAS, TAYLOR FRITZ, STEVE JOHNSON, MARDY FISH AND MORE
Time to get tickets to watch! Surly you have heard about The Largest Open Tennis Event in America!
TENNIS NEWS • RAFA NADAL CONFIRMS RETURN TO PRACTICE, EYES ABU DHABI EXHIBITION AND AUSTRALIAN SUMMER
According to Uncle Toni, Rafael Nadal was supposed to be back at practice on either Dec. 4 or 5. Well, better late than never!
Conchita Martínez prepara la temporada 2019 de Karolina Pliskova en Tenerife
Española y checa ya trabajaron juntas durante el pasado Open de Estados Unidos