Knowles and Nestor Part as Masters Cup Champions

Published on November 27, 2007 under World TeamTennis (WTT)
Sacramento Capitals News Release


Playing their final match together, Mark Knowles and Daniel Nestor clinched one of the biggest titles to have previously eluded them when they defeated US Open champions Simon Aspelin and Julian Knowle 6-2, 6-3 in the Tennis Masters Cup final. It was their ninth appearance at the circuit finale and their third appearance in the final. Last year they finished runner-up to Bjorkman/Mirnyi.

The victory also marked Nestor's 50th career doubles title, Knowles' 47th and their 40th team title. The team, which also won the Australian Open (2002) and US Open (2004), disbands having failed by one match to complete a career Grand Slam. (In 2002 Knowles and Nestor reached the Wimbledon final.)

The duo has won an ATP title together in 13 of the last 14 years and finished as the No. 1 team in 2002 and 2004.

Knowles and Nestor have played with different players since ending their longterm partnership after the US Open. Soon after announcing their decision to split earlier in the year, Knowles and Nestor won Roland Garros. (They began the year without winning a title in their first 13 tournaments.)

Their success in Paris prompted the players to delay their split until after Flushing Meadows, when Nestor began teaming with Nenad Zimonjic and Knowles played with a variety of partners after his planned partnership with Mahesh Bhupathi was derailed by injury.

Nestor was in particulalry devastating form. His returns kept Aspelin and Knowle on the back foot and on serve he was virtually untouchable. The Canadian did not drop a point in his first four service games and, after going down 0/30 in his fifth service game, reeled off four straight points to close out the match.

Nestor said: "We played a great match. Everything was clicking today: serves, returns. Pretty much the way you want to end a season. I don't know what more to say. We played unbelievable. It's, you know, a huge win for us, one title that has eluded us. It's been a very good year."

Knowles said: "We're a great team. Really it always makes it even more special to put it together in a final. We played probably one of our best matches of the week. Just a great way to end the year."

Knowles will begin the 2008 season with Indian Mahesh Bhupathi and Nestor will continue his new partnership with Serb Nenad Zimonjic. Asked whether this was truly the end of their remakable partnership, Nestor said: "There's always second thoughts. Whenever you make a decision, you know, nothing's ever... For me at least, I'm not a great decision person. You know, right now we have different partners heading into next year. But I'm not going to start thinking about the future or make any predictions or this and that. I don't know. I don't know what more to say. Seems like every time I have said something about this subject I've gotten myself into trouble, so I'll just leave it at that."

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World TeamTennis Stories from November 27, 2007


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