The Secret Language of Tennis Champions - Issue 39 : Sport
▻http://nautil.us/issue/39/sport/the-secret-language-of-tennis-champions-rp
It’s a warm summer afternoon in New York City in 2013, and Bob and Mike Bryan are hitting the fuzzy covers off tennis balls, their looping forehands and backhands mirror images of one another. The identical twins are warming up for the U.S. Open on one of the trademark blue courts in the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Playing singles against each other, Bob hits a soft volley. Mike returns it with a hard shot at Bob’s head and calls out, “Velveeta.” Cheesy shot. The Bryans take their customary position beside each other and face their coach David Macpherson and practice partner Georgy Chekhov. Although Bob is two inches taller and a leftie, the lanky, brown-eyed Bryans appear to be clones of one another. They glide across the court, perfectly in sync. A low ball sent down the (...)