QF:  (Q) Chris Guccione & André Sá (AUS/BRA) defeated (2) Jamie Murray & Bruno Soares (BRA) CR 10 (1+9) by 7-6(3) 6-7(4) [10-3]  

SF:  (1) Pierre-Hughes Herbert & Nicolas Mahut (FRA/FRA) CR 5 (3+12) vs (WC) Jonathan Erlich (ISR) & Colin Fleming CR 102 (45+57)

Oakland2002 wrote:

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Indie thanks for trying.

You would normally have a 64 team draw. It remains in place for the entire top half and half the bottom half. The last quarter ie players 49 to 64 are unfilled. None of the 48 teams include players in the singles draw. The 48 team draw plays through to generate 3 out of 4 semifinal teams.

The 4 th semifinal team is generated by a series of playoffs of teams generated from the singles tournament.

The two highest ranked 1st round losers and their chosen partners play each other to get into the next playoff against the highest ranked 2nd round looser and their partner in the singles draw. The winners then go on to play the team generated from the 3rd round of the singles tournament so eventually you get a semi-finalist generated by a team that could have been created by a looser in he first, second, third, fourth or QF's of the singles draw.

It would reduce the number of doubles games that would have to be played in a congested schedule. It would allow and encourage the best players to play on in the doubles should they get knocked out of the singles early (they would have to win more playoffs to reach the semis if they are knocked out early) or indeed as late as the QF's the incentive for players ranked 8-5 (assuming the results go to form) being one win and your in the semis, your at the tournament anyway. I said the highest ranked player at each point gets to choose the player they partner with, so it could be a player who did not qualify to play in the singles draw or alternatively another player already knocked out of the singles. So for example at RG if Andy lost in the QF he could pair up with Dom or for example if Kyle knocked out in the second round but really it would make most sense to play with another loosing quarter finalist.

It would strike a decent balance as there would be 48 places for dedicated doubles teams in the draw but still allow the paying public to see the stars of singles tennis playing doubles at the business ends of tournaments and taking it seriously. I would award singles points for doubles wins in order to provider an incentive to singles players to play doubles as and when they got knocked out, thereby making the complete tennis skills set more relevant to your ranking and grow interest in the doubles format of the game.

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Sorry, I meant to take time to read through this before.

I now fully understand it.  Err no, no thanks.