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Geregistreerd op: 05 Jul 2019 Berichten: 435
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Geplaatst: 22-07-2019 06:57:33 Onderwerp: inting. "Unless you ha |
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LONDON -- All this talk about no Americans left at Wimbledon strikes Mike and Bob Bryan as sort of odd. After their semifinal victory -- on the 4th of July, no less -- these 35-year-old identical twins from California are one win away from becoming the first team in the history of Open-era tennis to hold all four major titles at the same time. "The Bryan Slam," theyll call it, but dont look for that news to knock baseball, hot-dog-eating contests or Andy Murray out of the headlines in either the United States or Britain. The Bryan brothers play doubles, and despite their history making success, they live in a world where their games arent fully appreciated and fame is hard to come by. "The hardcore tennis fan loves doubles, but the casual sports fan doesnt know enough about it," Mike Bryan said. They love stars. Doubles players arent stars." If their list of accomplishments belonged to a singles player, theyd be considered among the best of all time. --Their 14 Grand Slam tournament titles would tie them for second with Pete Sampras. --Their 310 weeks at No. 1 would be eight more than Roger Federers record. --Their 90 tournament titles would rank third behind Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl. Instead, they must "settle" on holding the record for doubles in all those categories. Theyve raked in more than $20 million in prize money over their 15 years as pros and have gone 21-3 in Davis Cup matches -- a near sure-thing for a country that, for the first time in 101 years, didnt have a male singles player in the third round of Wimbledon and also saw its last woman go out Wednesday. Quite a resume. Place them outside a tennis tournament, however, and usually, they can walk down the street in peace. "Its the names and the stars," said Jack Nicklaus, the 18-time major golf champion, who was at Wimbledon this week and watched the Bryans play. "The singles players are really good, no question about that. If the doubles players were good enough, theyd be playing singles. To a large degree, I think thats the way most people look at it." Though it struggles for air time, doubles can be entertaining -- the last bastion of 21st-century tennis where a net game, teamwork and a couple of reflex volleys can still carry the day. Nearly two-thirds of frequent recreational players in the U.S. play doubles, according to the most recent study by the U.S. Tennis Association. At the pro level, it can be quite an entertaining show, as was the brothers 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 victory Thursday over the newly formed team of Indias Rohan Bopanna and Frances Edouard Roger-Vasselin. "I think they get overlooked and I think the top current singles players very, very seldom play doubles," said Pam Shriver, whose 8 1/2-year partnership with Martina Navratilova produced 20 Grand Slam titles. "I think doubles have always taken a back seat since Open tennis and prize money settled it all." (The lone exception: The Williams sisters, whove combined to win 13 Grand Slam doubles titles.) In their semifinal victory Thursday, the Bryans improved to 8-1 lifetime in Wimbledon five-setters. Their success in the close ones -- and the not-so-close ones -- makes sense, considering theyve been together forever, literally, while other teams come and go, sometimes changing partners by the week. The Bryans opponents in Saturdays final will be Croatias Ivan Dodig and Brazils Marcelo Melo, yet another one of those "honeymoon teams," as the Bryans like to call the new teams. "The sibling relationship might not even hold up under this amount of travel and stress," said Bob Bryan, who plays lefty, while his brother plays right-handed. "Its maybe only the twin relationship that can stand this kind of test of time. I definitely dont think just a normal partnership can hold up under this many years of ups and downs and finger pointing. "Unless you have the confidence that your partners not going to be looking around for someone else after a heartbreak loss. I mean, thats what we have. We have that loyalty that no matter how bad I return during a stretch, I know hes not going to be talking to (Daniel) Nestor, or texting Nestor" a 40-year-old Canadian doubles specialist. Almost every time they step onto the court, they will be both the favourite and an undercard. They accept both fates with equal enthusiasm. "As an athlete, youve got to cherish those moments," Mike said. "Were on the road and you can get mentally tired of those moments when youre playing week in, week out, basically putting your(self) out on the line, having guys gun for you because youre the number-one team. But then you go home and you realize you need that adrenaline rush, and youre itching to get back out there." Radek Faksa Jersey . The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists detailed in a report how Russian and international journalists have been harassed and prevented from covering sensitive stories in Sochi such as the abuse of migrant workers and environmental issues. Brian Bellows Stars Jersey . Chief prosecutor Gerrie Nel also accused Pistorius of tailoring his testimony to fit the evidence at the scene. Pistorius denied the accusations. Nel alleged that the Olympic runner changed his aim with his 9 mm pistol to ensure that he hit Steenkamp as she fell back against a magazine rack in a toilet cubicle. http://www.thedallasstarshockey.com/jamie-benn-hockey-jersey/ . Four years after winning gold on home ice in Vancouver, the Canadians will get a chance to make it two in a row Sunday against Sweden after beating the United States 1-0 in the Olympic semifinals Friday at Bolshoy Ice Dome. Craig Hartsburg Jersey . This week, topics cover the World Series champion Red Sox, John Farrell and what to look forward to this off-season. Mike Gartner Stars Jersey . In a matter of days, he went from unwanted to wanted, from fired to hired, from discarded by the Philadelphia Eagles with reputation tarnished to rock star treatment and a new fat contract from the Washington Redskins.DOVER, Del. - The NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Dover International Speedway has resumed after it was red flagged for 22 minutes because of potholes in the concrete track. The race was stopped 160 laps into Sundays 400-lap race after chunks of the track came loose and damaged Jamie McMurrays car. The race was soon stopped and ccrews were not allowed to work on the cars.dddddddddddd. McMurrays plea for an exception was denied. NASCAR officials and safety crews went to work on the potholes and tried to apply a quick-drying concrete mix. Cup races were infamously delayed by potholes at Martinsville in 2004 and the 2010 Daytona 500. ' ' ' |
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