In an Australian Open dominated by players in their 30s, the two oldest remaining fell just short of adding the men's doubles title to their generation's haul.
American twins Bob and Mike Bryan, 38, lost the men's doubles final Saturday evening to Henri Kontinen, 26, and John Peers, 28, with the Finnish-Australian team prevailing 7-5, 7-5.
The Bryans have won 16 Grand Slam titles together, the most recent of which came at the U.S. Open in 2014. Though they were particularly frustrated by landing only 47 percent of their first serves in the final, the runner-up finish proved satisfying, especially after third-round exits each of the past two years here.
"It's obviously one round short, but it's a positive way to start the year," Mike Bryan said. "A final of a slam is nothing to hang your head about. We're going to take some positives out of it. It was fun being in another final. But, yeah, we're just going to work harder, and hopefully this will set us up for a big year."
Though the presence of 30-somethings in both the men's and women's singles finals represents a departure from the demographic norms, a grayer class has long ruled in men's doubles. Daniel Nestor, ranked 15th, is 44; Leander Paes, still one of the game's best, particularly in mixed doubles, is 43.
"It's just great to see what Fed and Serena and Venus, all these players have done," Mike Bryan said. "Longevity in the sport is pretty cool, I think. Especially in doubles, you can go until you're 40. Guys are just setting the bar a little higher. So for these younger players, they can look at their career and say, OK, we can play 20 years."
Tough as they come
Brad Dickson of the Omaha (Neb.) World-Herald, on the wife of Atlanta Falcons guard Andy Levitre going into labor but staying for the entire playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks: "I think we have our first female captain of the All-Madden Team."
A good deed
Now that the Chargers have taken their ball and moved to Los Angeles, the Padres are the only professional sports team in San Diego.
For some fans in and around the city, that reality is probably still sinking in. For others, well, we know it's quite the opposite. We've seen their anger on display in the weeks since their relocation was made official, with some going as far as burning their old Chargers apparel.
To the destruction of Chargers gear the Padres are now asking fans to reconsider their actions. That's because they have a better idea for heartbroken fans looking to discard those old shirts and hats, and it includes exchanging those items for a credit at the Padres Majestic Team Store.
From there, the Padres have announced they will donate the clothing items to those in need.
Obviously, the Chargers leaving town is a big negative for sports fans in San Diego and the community as a whole, but at least the Padres have found one creative way to draw something positive from it.
Sports on 01/29/2017