The United States has clinched its record-breaking 32nd Davis Cup Tennis title by taking an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the best-of-five match final series. As VOA's Steve Schy reports from Portland, Oregon, Bob and Mike Bryan scored the decisive point with a victory in doubles.
The world number-1 ranked Bryan twins assured the United States of its first Davis Cup title since 1995 by beating Russia's Nikolay Davydenko and Igor Andreev, 7-6, 6-4, 6-2 in Saturday afternoon's doubles match.
Team USA won the opening set 7-6 in a tie-breaker, then built on that momentum by breaking Russia's serve in the opening game of the second set. The Bryans never lost their serve during the match and went on to win the second set, 6-4, before breaking the Russians twice and winning the final set, 6-2.
Igor Andreev said the Americans were just too strong. "They are much better doubles players," he said. "So we could do well sometimes as we did in the first set, played till tiebreak. But then every service game was harder to keep our serve. So the early break in the second [set], that is what changed all the games."
A raucous crowd filled every one of the 12,400 seats at a packed Memorial Coliseum, loudly cheering every point as the Bryans moved closer a seemingly certain victory. Mike Bryan talked about getting the chance to clinch the victory.
"To see these guys go out there and handle it so well, Andy looked so relaxed out there and just stepped up, and then James played phenomenal and put us in the position to go out there and clinch it," he said. "A dream for us to win the final match and have the guys rush out and come jump around with us, there's nothing like it."
Andy Roddick and James Blake put the United States ahead 2-0 on Friday with singles victories. Roddick dominated Dmitry Tursunov, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 while Blake downed Mikhail Youzhny 6-3, 7-6, 6-7, 7-6. Roddick says winning the Davis Cup was a true team victory.
"To be here and to bring the Cup back to the States is just an amazing feeling," said Roddick. "But more importantly, just to share the journey with these guys. It's just been so much fun. For us to have our moment, I feel like we really do deserve it. We've been the ultimate team and it's just been a blast and it's been an honor to be a part of that."
Sunday's dead rubber [meaningless] reverse singles matches are scheduled to feature Andy Roddick taking on Mikhail Youzhny and James Blake facing Dmitry Tursunov.
