’We have always complemented each other’

With six Grand Slam doubles titles, Mike and Bob Bryan are well on their way to becoming one of the most successful doubles pairs in the game’s history. Having won titles with style, energy and remarkable understanding, the brothers will give Indian fans a chance to watch them in action at the 2009 Chennai Open. In an email interview with Nandita Sridhar, they discuss their partnership, the Chennai Open and what makes them one of the best doubles combinations in the world.

Question: What were your early years in the sport like? How and when did the decision to focus solely on doubles come about? Who has been your biggest influence?

Answer: Both of us had our first win at a doubles tournament at the age of 6, in a 10-and-under event. We had a great junior career by winning over a hundred doubles titles together. We both have been our biggest influences and things have really gone the way it should.

What makes you both the doubles force that you are?

We have always complemented each other, motivated each other and have always shared our views on our performances, which have really helped us in a huge way.

Once you decided on doubles, did the option of singles come up at any stage?

Things were great since we started playing doubles, which has got us huge victories. We are happy about it. We never felt the need to play singles.

What was the experience like, winning your first title, specially your first Grand Slam?

Well, it was a great victory for us.

Strategically, how does your partnership work? Is there more of an instinctive understanding between the two of you, or is there a lot of planning and strategy involved?

Well there is a lot of understanding between us. We have been playing since the age of 6 and have had many victories. We play our best in every game. We are here to win. We complement each other a lot, motivate each other, we know our strengths and weaknesses, so that helps us strategically plan and win matches. It’s been great for us and we will keep the wins coming in the future as well.

You have played both Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi — two of India’s greatest doubles players. What would you have to say about them?

Mahesh and Leander are great ambassadors for Indian tennis and they have done wonders for themselves and made their country proud on different occasions. We are happy with their performances.

Have either of you ever considered partnering anyone else?

No, we are great together and will play together.

What sort of goals have you set for yourselves for 2009?

We would like to play our game, be focused and have a great time playing tennis. We would also like to regain our number one ranking. We hope to start the year with a bang and win the Chennai Open 2009.

Having won all four Slams, will the focus now be on records, bettering the Woodies or even going on to become one of the greatest doubles pairs?

Well for both of us tennis is very close to our heart. We are here to win every match we can, and have fun. We will definitely try to become one of the greatest double players in the history of tennis.

American tennis players are known to enjoy a very good relationship with each other. How is your relationship with the other Americans like Andy Roddick, James Blake and Mardy Fish?

They are great friends. Whenever we get the time, we hangout and have fun. We are competitive on the court and friends off the court

What prompted your decision to play in Chennai? What are you looking to achieve and experience at the Chennai Open?

Chennai Open is one of the top circuits today and India’s only ATP event. We heard the crowd here is very supportive. We will play our game, be focused and hope to start the year with a win at the Chennai Open.

What are your personalities like off the tennis court?

We love music, and we have a band. We jam together and have fun when we have the time.