Alternates Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic made the most of their first team appearance at the Nitto ATP Finals on Friday when they defeated four-time former champions Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan in Group Woodbridge/Woodforde.
The Bryans, who finished with a 1-2 record, failed to qualify for the semi-finals after Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares beat Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo 6-2, 6-4 during Friday's evening session.
Marach and Pavic, who replaced seventh seeds Ivan Dodig and Marcel Granollers for the final day of round-robin play, defeated the four-time former champions and fifth seeds 6-4, 6-4 in 69 minutes.
Marach and Pavic came close to taking a 3-0 lead in the first set, but at 30/40 on Mike Bryan’s serve, Bob Bryan crossed on a return for a backhand volley winner. Mike Bryan lost his serve at 3-3 in the second set.
The Bryans, who first qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals in 2001, are now 38-24 on the season that includes two ATP World Tour titles. Mike Bryan is tied with Canada’s Daniel Nestor on 1,056 for all-time career doubles match wins in the Open Era.
