(Image Source)























Bob and Mike Bryan completed their quest for 100 titles at the 2014 US Open on Sunday. Now that they have a firm place in the history books, here are 50 facts you need to know about the American tennis legends:
  1. Twins Bob and Mike Bryan were born April 29, 1978.
  2. Mike is two minutes older.
  3. Bob is a lefty.
  4. Mike is a righty.
  5. The brothers started playing tennis at age 2.
  6. Dad Wayne is a revered tennis coach, has been named World TeamTennis Coach of the Year three times and is extremely involved in tennis charity events and clinics across the United States.
  7. Mom Kathy was a former WTA Tour player and reached the mixed doubles quarterfinals at Wimbledon in 1965.
  8. In 1989, Kathy made her way into the "Guinness Book of World Records" for playing the longest women's professional match in history, a 62-game match against Elena Subirates.
  9. The twins grew up playing tennis at their parents’ tennis club in Camarillo, Calif.
  10. Their parents did not allow them to face each other competitively until the age of 17. They had to take turns forfeiting matches to each other until then.
  11. In juniors, Bob reached the No. 1 ranking in the U.S. Boys’ 18s in 1996.
  12. Together, Bob and Mike won over 100 junior doubles titles.
  13. They played tennis at Stanford University from 1997-98.
  14. In 1998, Bob won the rare “Triple Crown” for Stanford, capturing the NCAA singles, doubles (with Mike) and team titles.
  15. The twins turned pro in 1998.
  16. In 2003, they guest starred on the family comedy “8 Simple Rules.”
  17. They’ve been coached by former ATP player David Macpherson since August 2005.
  18. In November 2006, they were featured among other twins in the “Doubly Delicious” section of the “Sexiest Man Alive” issue of People Magazine.
  19. Mike was the first of the brothers to win a Grand Slam, the 2002 US Open mixed doubles title with Lisa Raymond. Mike and Raymond also went on to win the mixed doubles titles at the 2003 French Open and 2012 Wimbledon.
  20. Bob has won seven mixed doubles titles (2003 US Open with Katarina Srebotnik, 2004 US Open with Vera Zvonareva, 2006 US Open with Martina Navratilova, 2008 French Open with Victoria Azarenka, 2008 Wimbledon with Sam Stosur, 2009 French Open with Liezel Huber and 2010 US Open with Liezel Huber).
  21. The brothers were members of the winning Davis Cup team in 2007, along with fellow Americans James Blake and Andy Roddick.
  22. The pair won the bronze medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing in men’s doubles and then…
  23. They won the gold medal at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
  24. Mike also won the bronze medal at the 2012 Olympic Games in London in mixed doubles with partner Lisa Raymond.
  25. After the twins won the 2010 US Open men’s doubles title, they were gifted scarves from the United Nations’ Pakistani ambassador in recognition of their generous donation to the relief efforts in his flood-ravaged homeland that year.
  26. The two founded the Bryan Brothers Band, with Bob on keyboards and Mike on drums and guitar.
  27. Their band released an album at the 2009 US Open called "Let It Rip."
  28. Their famous gigs included a performance with the Counting Crows in Tampa in October 2008 and at Arthur Ashe Kids' Day at the 2010 US Open (with a guest appearance from Novak Djokovic).
  29. Their favorite bands are the Counting Crows and Dave Matthews Band.
  30. Both say Edward Norton is their favorite actor.
  31. In 2010, the brothers were featured on CBS’ “60 Minutes,” which captured their whirlwind life on and off court.
  32. They have thrown out the first pitch at New York Yankee games twice and at Los Angeles Dodger games three times.
  33. Despite originally sharing a Twitter account (@BryanBros, which now has over 137k followers), Bob now runs the initial account as his own, and you can follow Mike at @BryanBrothers (which has over 97k followers) for his personal thoughts.
  34. Bob married attorney Michelle Alvarez in 2010 in Miami.
  35. Mike married his Welsh-born wife Lucille in 2012 in California and still resides there.
  36. Bob calls Miami home and recently moved into a new house there.
  37. Bob’s daughter Micaela was born Jan. 31, 2012, and was often photographed posing in their winners' trophies as an infant.
  38. Bob’s son Bobby Jr. was born Dec. 24, 2013.
  39. Micaela Bryan has a very popular Twitter account (@MicaelaBryan) with almost 20k followers.
  40. Younger brother Bobby Jr. is also on Twitter (@BryanbrosJr) with almost 2k followers.
  41. The Bryan Brothers wear apparel by KSWISS on court.
  42. Their racquet of choice is by Prince.
  43. They have been voted ATPWorldTour.com Fans' Favorite Team for the past nine years.
  44. Since winning their first ATP World Tour title in Memphis in February 2001, the brothers have won at least five titles each year for 13 consecutive years.
  45. Their 100 ATP World Tour titles, broken down by surface: hard (62), clay (23), grass (12) and carpet (3).
  46. They’ve won their 100 titles in 13 different countries, with the most having been won in the United States (43).
  47. They are great with their fans, often signing many more than the earmarked three tennis balls for the crowd after a win – they sometimes bring their own bag of balls to sign and hand out.
  48. They celebrate big points or match wins with their trademark chest bump until…
  49. They won their 100th title at the US Open and did what Mike called a “dirty dancing swan dive.”
  50. They are the greatest doubles team of all time and are unlikely to ever be surpassed.
(Source)

Post a Comment

 
Top