Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic enjoy the celebrations after defeating the Bryan brothers to regain the doubles title. Defending champions Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic retained their Wimbledon crown by defeating top seeds Bob and Mike Bryan in a high-quality doubles final.The 7-6 (9-7), 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (7-3), 6-3 contest always promised to be an intense affair between the two top doubles team in the world. But it was the second seeded pair that eventually stole the advantage, winning a total of 142 points compared with the Bryans’ 139 in a duel that displayed immaculate doubles play. The sheer quality of tennis was perhaps illustrated by the fact it took an hour and 38 minutes before the first break point opportunity of the match even arose. That was on Zimonjic’s serve in the third set. Until that point, the play had been near flawless but the Serb served three double faults in that game. A Nestor smash gave the second seeds a get out of jail card and it was the Canadian who again came up with the goods in the eventual third set tiebreak. He produced an incredible passing winner to earn the pair four set points, which they converted on their second opportunity. On paper, the Bryans were the favourite to win the title as top seeds. The 2006 Wimbledon champions and holders of seven Grand Slam titles were also making their 15th appearance in a major final, while this was only Nestor and Zimonjic's third together. However, Nestor and Zimonjic went into the match with a 5-3 upper hand over the Americans in the head to heads. All their previous meetings had been in finals but it was the Canadian/Serb duo who had won five of the last six contests so their confidence was brimming. When a breakpoint opportunity emerged early in the fourth set, Nestor and Zimonjic wasted no time in seizing it. The previous three sets had all broken the 40-minute barrier, but the 2-0 lead gave the second seeds the jolt they needed and they whisked away the third set in under half an hour. Zimonjic closed out the match with an ace to earn the pair their second Grand Slam title together. Speaking after the match, Nestor described retaining the title as a "great accomplishment". "It's great to come back here. One of the first things I noticed was our name on the board, on the big plaque. Now we get it twice. It's obviously going to be special to come back next year and see that. "We played two solid finals. I thought we played pretty well from start to finish. Those guys are obviously a great team. We both served well, returned well when we had to. Nenad played great. It's great to be back as champions." Zimonjic agreed: "It's always special to play on the Centre Court, a full stadium. I have to say that this is the only place with such a big tradition, and the doubles is still very popular." Nestor also spoke of his delight at winning a second title with Zimonjic. "It's amazing. We started playing together to win Grand Slams. That's what we've done. Unfortunately, this year at the French Open I played a bad match in the semis. I thought we could have easily won that slam too. "The way we play together, we give ourselves a chance to win every tournament and every Grand Slam. We have a good chance of winning on every surface, I think, which is nice."
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the legend
joyful rogger fedder
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Nestor/Zimonjic retain doubles trophy
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Bryan brothers through to final
Bob and Mike Bryan attack the net during their semi-final match against Wesley Moodie and Dick Norman. Bob and Mike Bryan gained their revenge over Dick Norman and Wesley Moodie with a 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 victory to move into the men's doubles final. Just a few weeks ago, the men faced each other at the same stage of the draw in the French Open where the Bryans were knocked out of the tournament after holding three match points. But the American top seeds emerged fresh and focused in the rematch against Belgium’s Norman, 38, and former Wimbledon men’s doubles champion Moodie, who won the title in 2005 partnering Stephen Huss. The first set was a close affair and Moodie had the No.1 Court crowd in stitches after hitting a volley that landed in the throat of his racket, which he promptly threw over the net in a comedic act in the hope of winning the point. It didn't work. The Bryans nudged deuces on their opponents' serve throughout the first set and their efforts looked as though they would pay off at 5-6 on Moodie’s serve. The Belgian/South African duo made a string of errors, including a double fault and long backhand, to gift the Bryans three set points. But the ninth seeds managed to hold and force an eventual tiebreak, which the brothers commanded early on. Quick hands and superb defending help them clinch the first set. The second set went the same as the first. It ended on another tiebreak, again played superbly by the Americans who took it with the loss of only three points. In the third set, the top seeds once again held three match points on their opponents' serve. Astonishingly, Norman hit three aces in a row to save those. A fourth match point came and went. So did a fifth and sixth. There was a sense of now or never but after two hours and three minutes the Bryans managed to convert on the seventh match point and reach the Wimbledon final. They will now compete for their eighth Grand Slam doubles title together.
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