Henry Patten, who studied at the Ipswich School, is through to a second Wimbledon men’s doubles final alongside Finnish partner Harri Heliovaara after defeating Thanasi Kokkinakis and Aleksandar Kovacevic 7-6 , 7-6 in Thursday’s semi-final.
The 2024 champions held their nerve in two tense tie-breaks on Court One to book another appearance in Saturday’s showpiece on Centre Court, with Patten sealing victory with a service winner.
Henry Patten of Great Britain during the Gentlemen’s Doubles match against Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia and Aleksandar Kovacevic (Image: Ben Whitley)
The British left-hander admitted an ATP proposal to overhaul men’s doubles had provided extra motivation.
Plans presented to the ATP Player Council would halve the size of doubles draws from 2028, while also reducing prize money by 50%, with the money redistributed to singles players.
Patten, who shares the world No. 1 doubles ranking with Heliovaara, has been one of the most vocal critics of the proposals, previously claiming they were “elitist and shambolic”.
He said: “The best thing I can do is win as many tennis matches as possible and get in the interview room to speak, because that is the best way to tell my story and hopefully help people see that people like me deserve to be able to play tennis and make a career out of tennis.
Harri Heliovaara of Finland and Henry Patten (left) of Great Britain during their Gentlemen’s Doubles match against Adam Pavlasek and Patrik Rikl (Image: Ben Whitley)
“I know doubles is never going to be as popular as the top singles guys, but of course there was motivation.
“I wanted to beat those guys today for the doubles players.”
Patten and Heliovaara first teamed up only three months before lifting the Wimbledon title in 2024.
Since then they have added the Australian Open crown and the ATP Finals title to their growing list of achievements.
Reflecting on another run to the Wimbledon final, Patten said: “It feels amazing. Real joy and elation. It never gets old.”
Henry Patten of Great Britain during the Gentlemen’s Doubles match against Mac Kiger and Patrik Trhac (Image: Mike Egerton)
