Matthew Patten

The other day, I asked one of the various AI-driven search engines a question: “Name British Wimbledon Champions of the last fifty years” The answer included the fabulous Virginia Wade, of course, who so memorably took the Ladies Singles title in 1977 - the year of the late Queen’s Silver Jubilee. And Andy Murray obviously achieved that superb Wimbledon win in 2013, becoming Britain’s first men’s singles champion since the great Fred Perry took the title three times on the trot back in the 1930s. But, but, but ... In 2023, Britain’s Neal Skupski took the Wimbledon men’s doubles title, paired with Wesley Koolhof of the Netherlands. That makes Skupski a bone fide Wimbledon champion – who AI failed to mention The following year, 2024, Henry Patten retained the Wimbledon men's doubles title for Britain, along with Finland’s Harri Heliovaara. And this year 2025, two Brits combined to keep the men's doubles title for Britain for the third year in a row - Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool. So that makes another four Wimbledon champions over the last fifty years, as well as Virginia Wade and Andy Murray. Let's not forget mixed doubles, either. The brilliant Jo Durie and fellow Brit Jeremy Bates won the Wimbledon mixed doubles title in 1987. Heather Watson won the mixed doubles title in 2016, partnering with Finland's Henri Kontinen. And Neal Skupski (partnering with Desirae Krawczyk of the US) won the Wimbledon mixed doubles in 2021 and 2022, along with his 2023 men's double title. Oh - and 2024 Wimbledon men's doubles champion Henry Patten also won, again with Harri Heliovaara, the Australian Open men's doubles title earlier this year. With the 2026 Australian Open due to start in mid-January, I decided to invite Henry Patten to be a guest on Planet Normal - the weekly @Telegraph podcast that I co-present with @AllisonPearson I wanted to interview Henry because, for my money, doubles is at least as entertaining to watch as singles tennis - with its fast reflexes and astonishing net-play, quite often even more so. And it is surely, just as huge an achievement to win doubles grand slams (including Wimbledon) as it is to win singles titles. Yet we hear so little about the UK's considerable success in tennis doubles - and, to me, that doesn't seem right. 🧵1/2