Doubles has never received the recognition it deserves, but it’s a career for many. Families of those players want to see them play on broadcast when it’s not possible to watch them courtside, and that’s almost impossible for ATP 250 events. A 13-year-old boy waking up early should be able to watch his father play on television. For Matias Gonzalez, it ended with an empty screen, and he has turned that into an emotional plea to ATP. 

Matías is the son of Mexican doubles veteran Santiago González. This week, he posted a video letter addressed to the ATP after he could not find his father’s match at the ATP 250 in Lyon anywhere. 

“This morning I woke up earlier than usual hoping to watch my dad’s match … before going to school,” he said in the Instagram video. “But the match was nowhere to be found, not on ESPN, not on tennis tv, not on any live streaming platform.”

Matías explained that he usually travels with his father for much of the year and does homeschooling while on tour. But touring is expensive, and some weeks he has to stay at home to give his parents’ wallets a rest, “because, once again, he plays doubles.” On those days, all he can do is open the ATP app and watch the score change. 

“Honestly it is a little frustrating to just sit there and wait for the numbers to change,” he said, not knowing what happened on court or whether his dad “hit an amazing winner.”

The letter is not only about his father. Matías says his best friends are the sons and daughters of singles and doubles players he has met on tour, and they all share the same wish: “We ALL want to be able to watch our dads play on TV.” 

He asks the ATP to broadcast doubles matches at ATP 250 events so that families and fans around the world can enjoy the excitement of the format. He also reminded the tour that doubles players “work hard and deserve the opportunity to share their talent and passion, and please think about kids like me, if you show doubles on tv you might inspire the doubles champions of tomorrow.”

Matías, who dreams of becoming a professional player in both singles and doubles, signed off as “a proud son, a tennis fan and a future singles and doubles player.”

The match he missed was a quarterfinal. Santiago González and his German teammate Hendrik Jebens advanced to the last eight of the Lyon tournament before falling to the French pair of Théo Arribagé and Albano Olivetti in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4. The Mexican-German pair did not win a break point on the day. Even though it was a crushing loss, Matias, as an aspiring tennis player, wanted to witness where his father went wrong. 

43-year-old Santiago Gonzalez has made his career out of doubles, reaching a career-high doubles ranking of No. 7 in 2023, has won 25 ATP doubles titles, and reached the 2017 French Open doubles final. Hence, it’s important for him and his family that the format prospers, but the signs are going in another direction.

Doubles hitting a roadblock

The ATP is currently pushing ahead with plans to reform doubles from 2028, which have drawn strong criticism from players. Under the proposals reported in July, doubles draws would be halved, from 32 to 16 teams at Masters 1000 events and from 16 to eight at ATP 500 and 250 tournaments, while the doubles share of prize money would drop from 20 percent to 10 percent.

The tour’s stated objective is to funnel that money back into early rounds and qualifying in singles, so that those just outside and inside the top 100 can fund their costs. A group of leading doubles players responded that they are not “a carnival sideshow,” warning that anyone outside the top 30 would struggle to make a living.

Regardless of where fans stand on that position, Matías’s letter brings a human touch to it. Doubles players and their families are requesting something simple – to be seen.