Do we have to start questioning the depth on the men's tour now? :)

From the San Jose Mercury News: McEnroe's magic proves worth wait

The first impression? Boy, John McEnroe looked old: All white hair, spindly legs and soft, spinny serve.

Yes, the HP Pavilion crowd roared when McEnroe was introduced alongside doubles partner Jonas Bjorkman at the SAP Open on Wednesday -- so late on Wednesday that it was almost Thursday, which is today -- and McEnroe's 47th birthday.

But you could almost hear a broad undercurrent: He doesn't look that old when he's doing TV commentary! What happened?

Then he hit the court, took some of his trademark brilliant swipes at the tennis ball in his first tour event in 12 years, and here came the second impression: Well, he really is officially near-his-50s old.

He did OK for a rusty, creaky old guy matched on court with several of the biggest boomers on the doubles tour.

And then he didn't just do OK. He did great. He did amazing. He did what he used to do -- play wonderful, winning, crowd-pleasing tennis.

In a result that might startle a few people when they check the Internet or open their papers across the nation, McEnroe and Bjorkman won in straight sets 6-3, 6-3, and it was McEnroe, not Bjorkman, who carried the performance.

``I want to inspire the old people,'' McEnroe told the crowd afterward. ``The old dog wants to teach the young guys a few more tricks.''

The first essential moment came when McEnroe fought off love-30 to hold his first service game in the third game of the match.

McEnroe's serves topped out at 119 mph, about 10 mph slower than the other servers, but he gritted his teeth, smiled when the ball came back at his feet too hot to handle, and he held on with a tough kick-serve on the deciding point.

The crowd burbled happily, but politely, and the match moved on. When McEnroe held again to take a 5-2 first-set lead, he seemed like just another player, decked all in white and working for a victory.

And he seemed happy.

McEnroe delivered the highlight and most essential moment when he gave his team the deciding service break on a stunning, poetic forehand top-spin lob over Stephen Huss and just inside the baseline.

Huss and Wayne Arthurs, the No. 2-seeded team, just seemed stunned. What happened?

``I did that for my Stanford teammates,'' McEnroe said of his lob. ``They know it was one of my favorite shots.''

The third and lasting impression of McEnroe's big return?

He's slower, but he wasn't that fast when he was young. He doesn't hit very hard, but he didn't hit very hard when he was young. And he isn't going to win any Grand Slam doubles titles.

But he can still hit crisp volleys, scramble to the right places and plop the ball at magic angles. He can still play the part of the old John McEnroe, once in a while.

Which is nice to know, for all of us.

Early in the evening, James Blake -- who lost in an upset Tuesday but stuck around Wednesday -- said he was looking forward to seeing the grand Hall of Famer trot out that left-handed voodoo again.

``I think some of the players want to get a chance at him on the singles court,'' Blake said with a smile. ``We've seen him in his prime. We know he's obviously past his prime on the singles court.

``But I think we all realize that he does have such a talent and real knack for doubles that he's still going to be a pretty good player.

``And he happened to pick up one of the best partners in the world in Jonas Bjorkman. So as well as being a smart tennis player, he's a smart human being for getting Jonas to be his partner.''