Bryan brothers chase Woodies’ doubles record at French Open
Brothers Bob and Mike Bryan will arrive at the French Open seeking to become the most successful men’s doubles combination tennis has yet seen.
With their victory over Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic in the final of the Madrid Masters 1000 on May 16th, the Bryan brothers drew level with the record 61 men’s doubles titles won by Australian duo Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde over the course of their distinguished doubles partnership.
While it’s now just a matter of time until the Americans hold the record in their own right, claiming it at a Grand Slam must hold a certain appeal for the world’s No.1-ranked doubles team.
That Roland Garros is the next available opportunity to win a record-breaking 62nd doubles title does, however, count against the 32-year-old twins’ chances of holding the outright record just yet.
The Bryan brothers have won the French Open men’s doubles title just once in their careers so far, in 2003, and have not reached the final of the clay-court Grand Slam since 2006.
Still, they have won 13 titles together on dirt courts and encouragingly for the brothers they enter the French Open fresh from winning the titles at the two most recent clay-court Masters 1000 events, in Madrid and Rome.
Should the Bryans’ winning form come to an end in Paris though, with the grass-court season beginning at the conclusion of the French Open, it could be a little while yet before they find their names in the record books. They might be the most successful doubles team in men’s tennis but they’ve not won a solitary title on that surface since claiming their sole Wimbledon crown in 2006.
The Woodies, whose all-conquering partnership ended with Woodforde’s retirement in 2000, might be about to be consigned to second place on the list of all-time men’s doubles victories, but the Bryan brothers pose no threat of overtaking the Australian pair’s record six Wimbledon doubles titles any time soon.
Whether it’s at the French Open, or somewhere else on the tour, the next time the Bryan brothers secure victory in a final, they’ll have more to celebrate than just another title. It will be the title that marks them out as the most successful doubles team in history.
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