From contrasting personalities to passionate compatriots and superstar siblings, Grand Slam doubles draws create many compelling combinations. But few will attract as much attention at The Championships in 2019 as Andy Murray in his major return.
That the two-time men’s singles champion can team with Pierre-Hugues Herbert to contest the men’s doubles event is arguably already a victory for the 32-year-old Murray: in January, the former world No.1 signalled that difficulties created by a persistent hip injury would almost certainly mean an end to his storied career this Wimbledon.
Instead, following successful surgery and careful rehabilitation, the popular Scot shows every sign of reviving his career as part of a team. At Queen’s earlier this month, Murray combined with Feliciano Lopez to claim his first doubles title in eight years.
“It’s really special,” said Murray, on lifting only the third doubles title of his long career. “It’s more special than a lot of the singles tournaments that I’ve won for a lot of different reasons.”
A partnership with the accomplished Frenchman could make Murray’s professional return even more special yet. The popular Herbert will be familiar to many for the four Grand Slam doubles titles he claimed alongside countryman Nicolas Mahut, with victory at 2016 Wimbledon among those highs.
Murray and Herbert, unseeded at The Championships, will commence their partnership against Romania’s Marius Copil and Ugo Humbert of France. Successful progress wouldn’t be without some emotional challenges for Murray, as a potential encounter with older brother Jamie – who is teamed with fellow Brit Neal Skupski as the No.10 seeds – looms in the third round.
Andy Murray is not the only high-profile man contesting the doubles event after recovering from a major injury to his hip.
In 2018, Bob Bryan was recovering from surgery and unable to take his place in a record-breaking partnership with twin brother Mike. While the Bryans have won 16 Grand Slams together (including Wimbledon in 2006, 2011 and, 2013), Mike teamed with Jack Sock to triumph at the All England Club last year.
Seeded No.7 this year, the Bryans will be more inspired than ever as they revive their record-breaking partnership; the American duo begin their campaign against Denys Molchanov and Igor Zelenay, from Ukraine and Slovakia respectively.
Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo, the top seeded Polish-Brazilian pair in the men’s doubles, open against Ben McLachlan and Jan-Lennard Struff (from Japan and Germany), while second-seeded Colombians Juan Sebastian Cabol and Robert Farah face local pair Jack Draper and Paul Jubb in the first round.
Big names also dominate the ladies' doubles draw – and none more so than the world No.1 in singles Ashleigh Barty, who teams up with another former No.1 in Victoria Azarenka. The singles stars have proven quite a force after joining foreces for the first time in doubles this season, with Barty and Azarenka most notably claiming victory in Rome.
The No.10 seeds meet Lidzija Marozava and Storm Sanders in the opening round. In a fascinating twist, each team of that first-round encounter features a player from Australia and Belarus.
Meanwhile, top seeds Timea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic will work hard to emulate the form that saw them claim the women’s doubles title at Roland-Garros. The Hungarian and French duo face an all-American pair as they take on Jessica Pegula and Maria Sanchez in the opening round.
Another major-winning pair in Samantha Stosur and Zhang Shuai also seek to replicate their successful Australian Open campaign from earlier this year. Seeded No.5, the Australian and Chinese players face Russians Margarita Gasparyan and Alexandra Panova in the first round.
It’s arguably no coincidence that Murray, Barty, Azarenka and Stosur are all notable for their Grand Slam singles triumphs – and perhaps also true that each equally appreciates the special significance of team success.
