Matt Doyle obit

 

Irish Davis Cup icon Matt Doyle dies aged 70

He was not on the list.

Matt Doyle, who reached the fourth round of the US Open in 1984 and who represented Ireland for many years in the Davis Cup, has died at the age of 70.

Doyle, who was born in California of Irish descent, played in all four majors and reached a career high of 65 in the ATP rankings in 1982.

His sole career ATP title came at the 1983 Cologne Grand Prix, where he defeated Hans-Dieter Beutel of West Germany.

Doyle's run a the US Open a year later came to end at the hands of John McEnroe, who went on rack up four titles at Flushing Meadows.

As a stalwart of the Davis Cup alongside Sean Sorensen, Doyle played in 17 Davis Cup ties over eight years, with McEnroe a famous visitor to the RDS in 1983 as part of the US team.

Looking back at that tie and the contribution made by Doyle to the sport on these shores, Sorensen told Tennis Ireland: "Matt was a fantastic, suave Californian, who brought an incredible sense of confidence to Irish Tennis, a can-do attitude that was really transformative.

He was clever, witty and a great guy to have on the court beside me because of his huge serve and presence.

"And in that Davis Cup match, he left us at the end of Day 1, tied at one-all against the United States. Imagine that!"

After his playing career drew to a close, Doyle acted as Ireland's national coach for a number of years and was assistant coach to former world number Mats Willander, as well as serving as ATP president from 1985 to 1987.

A gifted broadcaster, he worked for RTÉ as a tennis and golf commentator for a number of years, with Doyle receiving scholarship offers in both sports from his alma mater Yale, where he graduated from with a degree in Economics in 1978.