Bob and Mike Bryan have had a very eventful summer. The twin tennis stars won an Olympic gold medal in London in July, then won their record 81st doubles title, at the U.S. Open in New York on Sept. 10. This weekend’s return to their home state for the Esurance Tennis Classic in Mill Valley will provide a different sort of experience than the rush they’ve been through over the past few months. Read More

Stanford’s Mallory Burdette stood shot-for-shot with the world’s ninth-ranked player for almost an entire set Thursday before her opponent, Marion Bartoli, won 11 straight games to claim the second-round match at the Bank of the West Classic. The contest, held at Stanford’s Taube Tennis Center, was only Burdette’s second WTA-level match; she won her first two days earlier, earning the chance to face the tournament’s second seed, Bartoli, a three-time finalist. Read More

In a unique head-to-head matchup that lasted nearly three hours and featured several tense moments, sophomore Nicole Gibbs edged junior Mallory Burdette 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in an all-Stanford singles final Monday at the NCAA women’s tennis championships in Athens, Ga. Read More

Novak Djokovic wore down Rafael Nadal in the longest Grand Slam singles final in the history of professional tennis Sunday, winning 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5 after 5 hours, 53 minutes to claim his third Australian Open title. Djokovic sealed victory at 1:37 a.m. local time and became the fifth man since the Open Era began in 1968 to win three straight Grand Slam finals. Read More