Message to Serena Williams from John Isner: Keep an eye on your mailbox. Isner, America's highest-ranked men's singles player, said he'd like to put himself in the sweepstakes to play mixed doubles with Williams at the London Olympics this summer. He's not the only one. Andy Roddick who teamed with Williams at the Australian Open, and the Bryan brothers are among the other top candidates who could team up with the two-time Olympic gold medallist.
"I may be the odd man out," Isner said on a conference call on Tuesday to preview the London Games. "But I'm pretty good friends with Serena. Might need to bribe her, maybe send a gift in the mail to get her to play with me." Mixed doubles has been added to this year's Olympic programme and many players are considering adding doubles and mixed to their schedules, giving them two more ways of bringing home an Olympic medal.
Williams teamed with her sister, Venus, to win the women's doubles at the 2000 and 2008 Olympics. "Obviously, she's one of the most dominant players ever," said Isner, who is ranked ninth in the world. "To have her on my team would be a big advantage." Earlier this year, Williams said she knew she'd have various options for this year's Olympics, where the tennis tournament will take place at Wimbledon.
"A girl loves to have choices," she said. "Obviously the Bryans are like the world's best doubles players. Andy and I are super, super close. Personally I love John. You're not going to break the guy. It's an automatic I-don't-know-how-many games. I think it's so hard to choose. I don't know if you just throw everyone's name in a hat and figure out what happens next. Regardless, we want to do really well and take home a medal for the country. That's what it's all about."
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