Most doubles tennis matches are played as best of three sets, meaning the first team to win two sets wins the match.

Basic doubles format

  • In modern professional tournaments (ATP, WTA, and most ITF events), doubles is usually best of three sets, but if teams split sets, the “third set” is often replaced by a 10‑point match tiebreak instead of a full set.
  • At recreational, club, and USTA levels, the same best‑of‑three format is common, with many leagues also using a match tiebreak instead of a full third set to keep matches shorter.

Grand Slams and recent changes

  • At the Australian Open, Roland Garros, and the US Open, men’s and women’s doubles are played as best of three full sets.
  • Wimbledon historically used best of five for men’s doubles, but this has been changed so that men’s doubles is now best of three sets as well, aligning with the other Slams.

Recreational play and local rules

  • In casual or social doubles, players often agree on the format beforehand: one full set, an 8‑game pro set, or best of three with a 10‑point tiebreak if it goes to a deciding set, depending on time.
  • For learning and quick sessions, some groups just play a single set or even only tiebreaks, but official league or tournament play nearly always uses some version of best‑of‑three.

So if the question is “how many sets do doubles play in tennis?” the standard competitive answer today is: best of three sets, with a match tiebreak often used instead of a full third set.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.