The Bryans are already a legend in the tennis double and for the 7th times they will be at the top of the Doubles Rankings by the year end. They can’t be overtaken any more by the newly formed couple Lodra Zimonjic.
On December the 12th they will also break McEnroe’s record (270 weeks at the top of the ranking.)
This feast came after a remarkable 2011 when the duo won 2 slams (Australian Open and Wimbledon…11 in their career) and some other major events (Monte Carlo, Madrid, Houston, Queens and Vienna) .
Bob commented, ‘We’re obviously extremely pumped to finish at No. 1, especially with the quality of teams on the doubles tour. It’s always our ultimate goal when we start the year and we’ll definitely look back on 2011 with positive feelings. I want to congratulate our biggest rivals Mirnyi-Nestor, Llodra-Zimonjic, and the Indian Express (ie Bhupathi/Paes) on highly successful seasons and we look forward to another awesome event with the eight best teams in London.
‘Breaking McEnroe’s record is something that is hard to fathom. He’s such a legend and to achieve something like this won’t truly set in for awhile. Thanks to our great coach, David Macpherson, my beautiful and supportive wife, our parents who are always rooting from their computer screen back home, and all the tennis fans who get behind the great game of doubles.’
Than Mike added, ‘It’s always a special feeling finishing the year as the top team. I think it’s more satisfying than winning a Slam because it represents the season as a whole. When we now look back at 2011, it will now be with a lot of fond memories. The level of tennis always keeps getting stronger, so I’m most proud of our willingness to improve as we get older. I especially want thank our coach and one of our best friends, David Macpherson, who always is there for us win or lose and always pushes us to strive for more.’
