Sam Querrey and the Bryan brothers move into Farmers Classic singles and doubles finals

The way Sam Querrey has been playing this week, you would think he’s being paid by the minute.

The American has logged more than seven hours on Straus Stadium’s court in his first three matches and has been taken to three sets in each of them. But, despite these grueling matches, the only stat that matters is the three wins he has put up, pushing him through to the finals of the Farmers Classic after his 6-7 (7-3), 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 over Janko Tipsarevic Saturday.

Querrey, the defending champion of the tournament, looked like he was down and out after going down 5-1 in the second set tiebreaker. Tipsarevic hadn’t dropped a set all tournament and was two points away from continuing that trend and rolling to his second ATP tour final of 2010. But Querrey shocked the Serbian by rolling off six straight points to knot up the match and send it to a deciding third set.

“All three of these matches, I’ve kind of been down and away, and I’ve battled back,” Querrey said. “It lets myself know that it’s never over, even down 5-1 in the breaker. You’ve got to make the guy earn it, and that’s what I was trying to do. It’s not over until that last point.”

The third set didn’t come easy for Querrey. He got broken right away to go down 1-0 and had to save two break points to avoid falling behind 3-0. He then broke back to make it 3-3, and, more importantly, made sure Tipsarevic didn’t convert on any of his five break oppurtunities for the rest of the match.

Querrey broke Tipsarevic in the final game leading 5-4 to give him the win in two hours, 47 minutes. He celebrated by acknowledging his fan club – the self-proclaimed Samurai – with a big fist pump as soon as the match was over.

The tall, hard-serving Querrey has been visibly frustrated with his play throughout the week. After beating Kevin Anderson in the second round, he went straight to the practice court with a cardboard box full of Wilson tennis balls and fired serves almost until midnight. On Friday, he called himself “Debbie Downer” after rallying to beat Rainer Schuettler.

But Saturday was a different story. As the match went on, Querrey improved and started attacking with his serve, even hitting a 134-mph ace to squash a Tipsarevic break oppurtunity in the third set.

Tipsarevic didn’t leave with his head hanging but admitted he missed multiple chances to put Querrey away.

“I think it was a good match,” the No. 46-ranked player in the world said. “I definitely played the way I played, but I should have never lost this match.”

“We did a lot of running. I was I think running a little bit more but that’s my game. You could feel that the level of tennis dropped in the third set because of the tiebreaks.”

Bryans hit 100, 62 to follow?

Americans Mike and Bob Bryan breezed through another doubles match on Friday, defeating Indian Rohan Bopanna and Pakistani Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi, 6-2, 6-4.

It was the 100th ATP Tour final for the Bryan brothers. More importantly, it gives them a chance to break the all-time record for doubles titles Sunday on virtually their home court.

“It’s kind of amazing to believe how much work you put into each one of those,” Bob Bryan said. “The whole routine, 100 times. It’s a mind blower.”

If the twin brothers repeat as champions with a win on Sunday, it will be their 62nd title. The duo hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down: They have won all five of their finals this year and haven’t lost in 15 straight matches at the Los Angeles Tennis Center. According to the brothers, what makes it sweeter for them is the chance to do it in front of friends and family who make the drive from nearby Camarillo.

“I saw like ten cousins in (the crowd), all the grandparents are here. … We’re getting 85 tickets every time we play,” Mike Bryan said. “It’s going to be cool.”

A Woodie talks Bryans

Australian Mark Woodforde, co-owner of the doubles titles record with fellow countryman Todd Woodbridge, stopped by the Farmers Classic Saturday and spoke with reporters after the Bryans’ win.

He talked very openly about the Bryans and the fact that they are poised to break the record – a near certainty, even if it doesn’t happen Sunday.

“It’s kind of a form of flattery that Mike and Bob have idolized Todd and myself, that the Bryans have tried to emulate The Woodies,” he said. “You can swallow it a little easier that it’s good guys like Mike and Bob. Given that they’ve had to shoulder doubles the last few years – they’ve brought a lot of focus, emphasis, fun and excitement – then good on them.”