ATP World Tour Finals 2013: Tears for David Marrero after victory over doubles kings Bob and Mike Bryan Marrero and his partner Fernando Verdasco had just beaten the kings of the doubles court, Bob and Mike Bryan, 7-5, 6-7, 10-7 in a hard-fought final. It was the second-longest doubles match of this year's tournament, at 1hr 44min, and held up the arrival of the singles stars by 20 minutes. Yet while doubles may not get the airtime or the prize-money - the Spaniards earned $265,000 (£166,000) for their week's work, less than a sixth of what Novak Djokovic was gunning for on Monday night - this format continues to please the crowds, who enjoy the pace and variety of the rallies even if they are not always familiar with the full biographies of the players. This year has also been the best of the twins" career, delivering three grand slams and an unbeaten sequence of 25 matches in the summer - an extraordinary achievement in light of doubles" abbreviated scoring system which introduces a greater element of chance. Yet if the Bryans are ever vulnerable, it is against high-ranking singles players who can pass them as they loom forward at the net. On Monday Verdasco filled that role, for he is a rare example of a man who is prepared to combine both disciplines, having reached the Wimbledon singles quarter-final in July and finished the year ranked No 30 in the world. Marrero, 33, has also spent many years on the singles circuit. But with a track record of only having qualified for one grand slam - the 2008 French Open - he was not doing much more than covering his costs. This year, he has recognised that his partnership with Verdasco had greater potential and stuck exclusively to doubles. Marrero hit some raking passes of his own on Monday as the Spaniards overpowered their net-rushing opponents, but it was Verdasco's 117mph forehand in the second set that caught the eye, being only 8mph short of James Blake's world record. "I don't know exactly the miles that I have been making during my whole career," said Verdasco, who is built more like a WWF wrestler than a tennis player, "but I'm pretty sure that was one of the fastest. To win this event was unbelievably great for us, like a dream.