The Bryan Brothers announce their retirement, effective immediately

Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan, the winningest doubles team in ATP history, have announced their retirement effective immediately.

Their decision, first reported by Christopher Clarey of the New York Times*, was speculated after the 16-time major champions were noticeably absent from the US Open entry list. The pair will officially exit on a winning note, having successfully defended their title at the Delray Beach Open and helping the U.S. qualify for the Davis Cup Finals in Hawaii before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the tennis tours to shut down for five months.

“We just both feel it in our guts that it is the right moment,” said Mike Bryan. “At this age it takes so much work to go out there and compete. We love playing still but we don’t love getting our bodies ready to get out there. The recovery is tougher. We feel like we were competitive this year, last year, the year before. We want to go out right now where we still have some good tennis left.”

Now 42, the Bryans finish their decorated careers with more than 1100 wins together, 119 titles and an Olympic gold medal. Their first major success came at the 2003 French Open and they completed a career Grand Slam just three years later at Wimbledon. The two also amassed a record 39 ATP Masters 1000 crowns, becoming the first set of players in singles or doubles to clinch a career Golden Masters in 2014 with their Shanghai triumph.

We’ll have more on this developing story.*