Wimbledon Champion Turns to Flavio Cobolli to Challenge ATP Over Doubles Format Relegation

The proposal for reducing doubles games has already unsettled the tennis circuit, with players openly voicing their concerns. Even at SW19, the champion Henry Patten already criticized the plan to halve the doubles draw in favor of singles players from 2028. As the debate threatens the livelihoods of doubles specialists on tour, the Briton has once again urged singles players to speak up after holding talks with Flavio Cobolli.

“At Wimbledon, I had the chance to discuss this topic with some of the Top 10 singles guys as well,” Patten added in the recent episode of the Changeover Podcast. “Among everyone I spoke with, Auger-Aliassime and Cobolli were the two who were most supportive of us. Flavio told me he’d be ready to speak up; I’m not expecting them to do it out of the blue, but at least if they get asked questions about it,” he later explained.

The debate has already become one of the biggest talking points in professional tennis. At the center of it is a proposal internally known as “Product 28,” which aims to reduce doubles participation across the Tour.

Under the new proposal shared by the ATP, doubles draws at Masters events would be cut from 32 teams to just 16. At 500 and 250 tournaments, the draws would shrink from 16 teams to only 8, leaving just enough teams to complete a standard bracket.

The proposed changes to the tour don’t stop there either. ATP also includes a major redistribution of prize money, further increasing the gap between ‌singles and doubles players on the tour.

According to the proposal, the current 80-20 prize money split between singles and doubles, in favor of singles, would become 90-10.

Even at SW19, the Briton also criticized the ATP’s promotion of doubles players on social media. “The reality is you need to win a slam or be in the final of a slam to be anywhere near their Instagram page. I don’t see why they couldn’t promote eight guys,” the 30-year-old stated, directly challenging the ATP’s approach towards the doubles players.

Now that the Briton has spoken out once again, the discussion has only grown louder. Several other doubles players on the ATP Tour, including legends, have also expressed their frustration over the proposal.

Bryan brothers share their thoughts on ATP’s new doubles proposal

The prize money debate between singles and doubles players has already sparked serious controversy, which was visible at the recently concluded Wimbledon Championships. The winning pairs in both the men’s and women’s doubles events shared $1,012,282 between them.

On the other hand, the men’s and women’s singles champions each walked away with $4.8 million. The huge difference has only fueled fresh criticism from doubles specialists.

Now, the proposed “Product 28” changes have added another layer to the ongoing debate, and even the iconic Bryan brothers have remained frustrated with the direction the sport appears to be taking.

“If it passes, this will kill the doubles dream for any young players or college players that want to pursue doubles,” Bob had said during a press interview at the All-England Club earlier in July. 

“The pathway will be blocked to come up and make a living. The tour, from a financial standpoint, it looks like it’s the healthiest it’s ever been. They should be creating more opportunities for doubles players,” he further added.

Now, Patten has reached out to the Italian in the hope that he will also share their views on the proposal. If Flavio talks with ATP, that support could play an important role as the discussion continues to grow.

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