Ram/Mirnyi come up short in ATP Finals

Ram/Mirnyi storm into AT

By ALLON SINAI, AP
andy ram (photo credit: )
andy ram
(photo credit: )
Bob and Mike Bryan won the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals to reclaim the year-end No. 1 doubles ranking, beating Max Mirnyi and Israel's Andy Ram 7-6 (3), 6-3 in Sunday's final. It is the third time the American brothers have won the tournament and the fifth time they will end the year as the top-ranked doubles team. The twins got the only break of the final to go up 5-3 in the second set and Bob Bryan then served out the match at love. He fell to his knees in celebration before getting up to catch his brother as Mike jumped up into his arms. In the singles final, Nikolay Davydenko was to play Juan Martin del Potro. The Israeli/Belarusian duo, which will split up after the season-ending tournament in London, defeated Frantisek Cermak and Michal Mertinak 6-4, 7-6 (4) in the semifinals on Saturday, guaranteeing themselves $70,000 each even if they lose on Sunday. "We're just enjoying our last matches together," said Ram, who was knocked out in the round robin stage of the tournament with Yoni Erlich in both 2006 and 2007, when the event was known as the Masters Cup. "I enjoyed the last year very much, playing with Max. I learned a lot from him on the court and off the court. It was a great experience." Ram will begin next year with Frenchman Michael Llodra, with Mirnyi, who is hoping to spend more time with his family next year, to team-up with Mahesh Bhupathi. "Another day, another good match," reflected Mirnyi, who lifted the trophy in 2006 with Swede Jonas Bjorkman. "We're happy to come away with a win. It's a tough situation here. You play the last tournament of the year, it's the finals. There's a lot to play for. It's a great crowd that you want to play your best tennis in front of. We're really happy that we've come through." Ram and Mirnyi claimed the first break in the fifth game and saved five break points to take the first set. All 12 games of the second set went with serve, but Ram and Mirnyi won the crucial points in the breaker the duo clinched the victory after Cermak's backhand volley landed long. "The final is just going to be another exciting day," added Mirnyi. "This is probably our biggest occasion for the time that we've played together. This tournament is right up there with the Grand Slams."