Sunday, November 16, 2008

Nestor and Zimonjic end year No. 1

Nestor and Zimonjic end year No. 1


THE CANADIAN PRESS SHANGHAI -- A missing passport nearly derailed one of the best weeks in the career of Toronto's Daniel Nestor and doubles partner Nenad Zimonjic. The Wimbledon champions overcame the bizarre incident, then ran the table at the season-ending Masters Cup, earning the year-end No. 1 ranking with a 7-6 (3), 6-2 win over Bob and Mike Bryan of the U.S. in Sunday's final. The team nearly didn't make it to China after Zimonjic called Nestor to inform him that Miami customs officials misplaced his passport. "He called me a few hours before my flight and he didn't know where his passport was," said Nestor. "I didn't know whether I should board the plane." Another call not long afterwards confirmed that the document was back in safe hands and Nestor took off for Shanghai with the crisis averted. "I didn't want to get there five days before he showed up or come and he not be able to come, which is a possibility if he doesn't recover his passport," said Nestor. "Anyway, it all worked out in the end. It's a good story for the future. We can laugh at it." The pair was certainly all smiles following an efficient 73-minute victory over the Bryans, vaulting Nestor and Zimonjic past the California twins and into top spot in the doubles rankings. The duo finished the year with an impressive 47-17 record. Sunday's title also gave Nestor his second straight Masters Cup trophy, after he captured the event here a year ago with former partner Mark Knowles of the Bahamas. "It's hard to imagine," said Nestor. "It's a great feeling. We've had a great year, if at times a little inconsistent. But when we've played well, we've been very tough to beat. "We really get on a roll. I think when we're playing well, we're deserving of the No. 1 ranking. It was a fight to the finish in the final match of the season." The win denied the Bryans a fourth straight year-end top honour. Zimonjic ended as the top individual player since he has played two fewer tournaments than Nestor, who finished No. 2. With Bob Bryan nursing a shoulder injury, the American proved to be the weak link as he was broken twice in the second set as Nestor and Zimonjic sealed their success. "It was a little bit surprising to win the second set like that," said Nestor. "But there's so many times when we've played against them and they've been dominant, too. So it's nice to get it back." Zimonjic was also happy to revel in success. "I would like to thank Danny for playing, it definitely wasn't easy decision for him after having such a successful partnership with Mark," said Zimonjic. "We proved that we could play well. Obviously this is the best season I've ever had ... winning Wimbledon, playing finals at the French, and coming here as second seed, fighting for the first spot." The teams had met in three previous finals this season, with Nestor and Zimonjic winning in Toronto and Hamburg while the Americans were victorious in Rome.

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