It was only a few weeks ago when the Bryans routed the Lopezes in the second round in Cincinnati.
Here’s a look at Friday's matches, as the first champions of the tournament will be crowned after the men’s doubles final.
Lopez/Lopez (11) vs. Jean-Julien Rojer/Horia Tecau (12)
After the year they’ve had together, no one would’ve predicted Lopez and Lopez would be playing for the US Open title.
Despite winning three titles in 2017, the same might’ve been said about Rojer and Tecau. The No. 12 seeds, though, have played at a high level all tournament, only dropping one set on their way to the semifinals. In the semis, they upset the top seeds, Henri Kontinen and John Peers, after getting routed in the first set.
Both sets of finalists are battle-tested now, and as former Slam champions, know how to handle playing for the game’s biggest prizes.
Martina Hingis/Yung-Jan Chan (2) vs. Sania Mirza/Shuai Peng (4)
There once was a time when the “Santina Slam” was in play: Hingis and Mirza won three straight majors from 2015 to 2016, including the ’15 US Open title, before they started suffering a string of losses and separated.
Hingis and Chan have had an outstanding 2017 campaign, their first together, while Mirza—one of the greatest doubles specialists of her generation—has shuffled through a few partners this year. A lot is on the line with this being the last opportunity to capture a Grand Slam in 2017.
Lucie Safarova/Barbora Strycova (3) vs. Lucie Hradecka/Katerina Siniakova (7)
Safarova is the defending women’s doubles champ with Bethanie Mattek-Sands, who is out with an injury. The Czech has navigated this tournament quite nicely with her 2016 Olympic bronze medal-winning teammate Strycova. Their opponents—and countrywomen—present a mix of youth (Siniakova) and experience (Hradecka, the 2013 US Open doubles champion).
Hingis/Jamie Murray (1) vs. CoCo Vandeweghe/Tecau
Hingis and Murray, this year’s Wimbledon champions, know the nuances of mixed doubles like few others. Tecau is no slouch, having won the Australian in 2012 with Mattek-Sands, and contesting the men's doubles final earlier in the day. Vandeweghe, a singles semifinalist at the US Open this year, has the firepower to be a difference-maker.
Hao-Ching Chan/Michael Venus (3) vs. Anastasia Rodionova/Oliver Marach
Venus has had a dream season in 2017, capturing the French Open men’s doubles title with Ryan Harrison. Marach, a Wimbledon finalist, is right there with him. Both Chan and Rodionova have reached major mixed doubles finals in their careers.
Follow Van on Twitter: @Van_Sias
