Wimbledon 2012: Briton Jonny Marray into men's doubles final

Jonathan Marray became the first Briton to reach the men's doubles final at Wimbledon in 52 years after he and Freddie Nielsen overcame defending champions Mike and Bob Bryan.

Sheffield-based Marray and Denmark's Nielsen had played together at only three tournaments before Wimbledon.

But they prevailed 6-4 7-6 (11-9) 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (7-5) against the 11-time Grand Slam-winning Americans.

Bobby Wilson and Mike Davies were the last British finalists in 1960.

That pair lost, while the last British winners were Patrick Hughes and Raymond Tuckey in 1936.

Jeremy Bates was the last Briton to reach a Grand Slam men's doubles final, at the 1988 Australian Open.

Marray, 31, and Nielsen will face the fifth seeds, Robert Lindstedt of Sweden and Romanian Horia Tecau, in the final on Saturday, on Centre Court after the women's singles final.

Nielsen has tennis pedigree as his grandfather Kurt was twice a runner-up in the men's singles at Wimbledon in 1953 and 1955.

The victory did not come without controversy, however. The Bryans were angry at being moved to Court 12, where Hawk-Eye was not available, and they vented frustration at the umpire on several occasions.

"They've won all these tournaments many times over," said Marray. "To actually beat them in our first semi-final at Wimbledon is a pretty big thing. "

And looking ahead to the final, he added: "Winning a trophy at Wimbledon is why I play tennis.

"That's what I dreamed of when I was growing up so for it to come true would be the pinnacle of my career."

Serena and Venus Williams booked their place in the final of the women's doubles with a 2-6 6-1 6-2 win over number one seeds and fellow Americans Liezel Huber and Lisa Raymond.

The four-time champions will meet Czech duo Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka in the final, after they saw off Italian pairing Flavia Pennetta and Francesca Schiavone.

Serena contests the singles final against Agnieszka Radwanska on Saturday (1400 BST), and will return to Centre Court later with Venus following the conclusion of the men's doubles final.