MELBOURNE, Australia -- Bob and Mike Bryan hoped to cap off a memorable night that saw Serena Williams win her Open era record 23rd Grand Slam with one more of their own. But it will have to wait.
The fact that they lost to the No. 4-seeded team, Henri Kontinen of Finland and Australian John Peers, 7-5, 7-5, was hardly surprising. That it happened so quickly -- in 75 minutes -- certainly was.
Thus, their quest for a record-tying 17 major doubles titles apiece won't happen until at least the French Open in May. They remain one behind the great John Newcombe and tied with Todd Woodbridge, who won 11 titles with Mark Woodforde and five with Jonas Bjorkman.
The Bryans turn 39 in April, and although doubles is a genteel sport for gentlemen, it was a mild surprise when they made it to the men's final on Saturday night.
"I've been expecting the Bryans to break my record for years, so the fact [that] they haven't is more surprising than anything," said Woodbridge beforehand. "If they go on and win, that's great. One thing I'd wish for is they leave my Wimbledon record [nine titles] alone, to leave me with something."
Coming into this fortnight, American tennis didn't seem to be in a great place. Serena had lost her grip on the No. 1 ranking, and John Isner, the top-ranked American man, had fallen to No. 19.
But lost in the feel-good, old-time vibe that enveloped Melbourne Park, there was a powerful subtext: American tennis is just fine.
Serena and Venus blew through the women's draw and met in a Grand Slam final for the first time since Wimbledon 2009. The 6-4, 6-4 was entertaining, and the better player (by far) was the winner.
That overshadowed the fact that 11 U.S. women reached the second round, and four of them made the fourth round. The other two were revelations here: 21-year-old qualifier Jennifer Brady and CoCo Vandeweghe.
Vandeweghe cut a wide swath, entertaining the press with tart observations from the world of CoCo -- all the way to the semifinals. It was Vandeweghe who blasted No. 1 seed Angelique Kerber out of the tournament in the fourth round and made it possible for Serena to reclaim the No. 1 ranking. In the quarters, she waxed reigning French Open champion Garbine Muguruza, bageling her in the second set
Only Venus was better, in a three-set semifinal.
On the men's side, there were seven Americans aged 20 or younger in the main draw -- something that hasn't happened in a decade.
Nineteen-year-old Frances Tiafoe won his first Grand Slam match, and Ernesto Escobedo, 20, won his second. New Yorker Noah Rubin, another 20-year-old, won his first-round match and acquitted himself well against a guy named Federer in the second. He was so effective that the tight straight-sets result (it ended in a tiebreaker) left people worried about the condition of Federer's game.
Jack Sock, who is still only 24, had a nice tournament, reaching the third round with his lethal forehand.
So, who has won the most Grand Slam titles since the beginning of the 2015 season? You might want to make a note of this, because it could win you a few bets.
Martina Hingis, with three major women's doubles titles and four in mixed doubles, leads all players with seven. Serena and Novak Djokovic are next with five -- but there's another unlikely player tied with them.
Bethanie Mattek-Sands, currently the pride of Phoenix, Arizona, who won the women's doubles with Lucie Safarova, has four women's doubles titles and one mixed, with Mike Bryan.
Mattek-Sands, 31, is the No. 1-ranked doubles player among women.
"I go out there and play my game," she said. "That kind of stuff really takes care of itself. If you're sitting there at night trying to figure out 50 points here, 20 points there, you're probably not going to have as much fun as you want."
And even though Federer and Nadal headline the Sunday card here, there is one more opportunity for American gold.
Abigail Spears of the United States and Juan Sebastian Cabal are into the mixed-doubles final against No. 2 seeded Sania Mirza and Ivan Dodig.
Oh, did we mention Andy Roddick was elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame? He was the last American man to win a Grand Slam, back at the 2003 U.S Open.
"I'm excited by all of the young players coming up," Roddick told me. "American tennis will be just fine."