Lindstedt & Tecau Repeat In Casablanca; Bryans Win Fourth Houston Crown

© Aaron M. SprecherMike and Bob Bryan did not face a break point en route to victory.

Wimbledon finalists Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau successfully defended the Grand Prix Hassan II 2011 title in Casablanca Saturday with a runaway 6-2, 6-1 win over Colin Fleming and Igor Zelenay. Lindstedt won his 11th ATP World Tour doubles title while Tecau notched his eighth tournament victory.

Tecau said: “It’s great to start the clay-court season with a title; we did it last year and had a great summer. Hopefully we can repeat that by taking the confidence from here.”

Lindstedt said: “You never know when the next title will come, so you have to enjoy every one. To come back and start the clay season this way is more than we hoped for. To defend a title is incredibly special because it’s not easy to win eight matches in a row at the same place. We’re very proud of that.”

Top seeds Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan won their fourth US Clay Court championship and 69th career team title after an entertaining 6-7(4), 6-2, 10-5 win over fellow Americans John Isner and Sam Querrey in Houston Saturday night. It was a close scare for the 10-time Grand Slam champions, who let slip a 4-2 lead in the first set tie-break but did not face a break point throughout the match.

After trailing 0-3 in the match tie-break, the Bryans won 10 of the final 12 points of the match to secure their first title since winning the Australian Open in late January. It was the Bryans’ fifth final at the US Clay Courts, having previously won the title in 2007, ’09-’10 and finishing runner-up in 1999 when the tournament was held in Orlando. They have now won 16 straight matches in Houston.

The Bryans have a 69-39 record in doubles finals and last year they finished as the No. 1 team for a record sixth time in the past eight years.

Bob Bryan said: "Houston has always been great to us and we always have a great time here. Our results show that and we’ve had an amazing streak here. Today was a battle. Those guys are getting close. We’ve played them many times now and it’s always a big-serving battle."

Mike Bryan said: "It feels good to win here in Houston and we kind of needed this. It’s been a sparse last month and this will do wonders for our confidence. We love it here in Houston. We know all the hot spots, the best restaurants; I don’t even need to use navigation on my car anymore."