A revamped format that was supposed to put mixed doubles in the “spotlight” at the 2025 US Open has been branded a “profound injustice” and “shocking” by some players.

The draw size has been halved from 32 to 16 teams, and will be played across just two days, with all matches on the two main show courts – Arthur Ashe and Louis Armstrong.

The qualification process has also been altered, with eight teams earning direct entry based on their combined singles ranking – rather than their combined doubles rankings – and eight wild-card entries. 

And that’s not all. The format of the matches has also been changed, with sets now played to four games, no-ad scoring, tiebreakers at 4-4, and a 10-point match tie-break instead of a third set.

Prize money has been bumped to $1 million (£799,900) to the winning team, up from last year’s $200,000 (£159,980) top prize.

Mixed doubles at Grand Slams traditionally runs alongside the singles and doubles main draws.

At last year’s US Open, the mixed doubles draw started on the third day of the tournament and the final was held on the second Thursday.

However, the United States Tennis Association has opted for significant change at this year’s US Open, driven by a desire to make mixed doubles more attractive to the top players.

“We’ll be scheduling mixed doubles on the centre stage and enabling more fans worldwide to enjoy the thrill of watching their favourite stars compete for this coveted Grand Slam Championship title.

“By giving the competition its own spotlight, we’re elevating mixed doubles to put an even greater focus on the incredible talent we have across the sport. We’re working closely with top players, many of whom are eager to be part of this historic change.”

The 2025 US Open mixed doubles will be played on August 19 and 20, ahead of the singles main draw starting on Sunday, August 24.

Most top players spend the week before a Grand Slam preparing at the venue rather than playing tournaments elsewhere, thus potentially freeing them up to play in the new mixed doubles format.

Last year the US Open held a ‘Mixed Madness’ event in the week before the main draw that saw eight top singles players competing for one night in mixed doubles.

The mixed doubles changes have been met with mostly a negative response from players.

“Making decisions just following the logic of profit is profoundly wrong in some situations,” said last year’s US Open mixed doubles champions Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori in a statement.

“In the last few weeks we received the news that the US Open mixed doubles tournament will be completely turned upside down, cancelled and replaced with a pseudo-exhibition focused only on entertainment and show. 

“We see it as a profound injustice that disrespects an entire category of players. We don’t know at the moment if we’ll have the chance to defend our title but we hope this remains an isolated case.”

Jan Zielinski, who won two Grand Slam mixed doubles titles last year, said on Instagram that the decision had been taken without “any consultation with the players and based strictly on profit”. 

Three-time Grand Slam mixed doubles champion Kristina Mladenovic called the move “terribly shocking”.

Doubles world No. 9 Ellen Perez added on X: “Tell us that you think doubles players are trash, that tradition is overrated and job opportunity is a thing of the past without actually saying it.”

Five-time Grand Slam doubles champion Paul McNamee added: “Sets to 4 games in a Grand Slam? 16 teams with eight based on singles rankings and eight wild cards. I’m sorry, but the US Open now will not produce a bona fide mixed doubles winner. Devalued from a Grand Slam title to an exo.”

Two leading American singles players have given more positive reactions.

“I appreciate the importance of innovation and exploring new ways to engage more fans and grow our sport.” 

“I’m definitely looking forward to the chance to compete for a Grand Slam title in the future.”

World No. 12 Holger Rune replied to the US Open’s mixed doubles announcement on X with “interesting”.