The Madrid Masters, which runs from 24 April to 5 May, will serve as a testing ground for the ATP. The ATP hopes the rule changes will increase interest in doubles among fans, players and organisers. The ATP announced the new strategy in a press release on Wednesday.

Doubles tournaments have struggled to attract attention and are not financially viable for organisers because they no longer feature the top singles players. The ATP is trying to persuade them to return.

Some of the rules to be introduced include reserving up to 16 places for teams based on singles rankings, the ATP added. In other words, half of the 32 places in such a tournament will be determined by the singles rankings. This will result in matches featuring the top players on the circuit. Everything will be faster, the tournament will be shorter. The intention is to test it and see how it is received.

The doubles tournament will also be condensed into five days in the second week. Spectators will be able to move freely around the court, which will be an added bonus for the public.

Players will also be subject to new rules designed to reduce the length of matches. Instead of 25 seconds between points, there will be 15 seconds if the previous point was less than four shots. There will also be fewer breaks between points. This will significantly reduce the number of unnecessarily long matches.

"The format changes will be trialled at selected events during the 2024 ATP Tour season and further details will be announced in due course," the statement said.

The statement did not specify how many other men's tournaments will be played under the experimental format. That remains to be seen.