The AI Era Is Starting for Tennis Pros

Sports apps are most closely associated with the fan experience, as ways to engage an audience with nearly limitless entertainment options. Lesser known are the apps that help athletes navigate their world, from the mundane to the game changing.

Organizers of the Roland-Garros tennis tournament have introduced a mobile app for players and coaches that can provide both convenience and a strategic edge. The new app allows professionals to analyze the game more quickly and effectively, whether it’s a self-critique of mechanics or a breakdown of an opponent’s tendencies. Data analytics are increasingly important elements of sports, used for both training and strategy.

This new app, developed by Roland-Garros’ digital innovation partner Infosys, is the first in tennis to provide access to all video analytics and collaboration tools, such as sharable performance notes and video clips.

“We have leveraged powerful technologies and toolsets across the board to ensure fans, players, and coaches have the best experience possible, wherever they are,” said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer for Infosys.

At the 2019 Roland-Garros, a web-based proof-of-concept version was available to players and their coaches and agents. Roland-Garros officials were impressed and asked that the functionality be integrated into the players’ and coaches’ app this year.

After a match ends this year, coaches can create a 20-minute video playlist of the most important points in less than two minutes. They could also annotate the videos to provide direction and highlight crucial details. And players could examine rally analyses or stroke summaries while waiting for a lunch order to arrive.

“The discussions between a coach and player can be very objective and very pointed,” said Raghavan Subramanian, head of Infosys’ tennis platforms.

There are countless ways for players to slice and dice the data, find insights that weren’t readily apparent, and share the information. The portal uses artificial intelligence (AI) and automation to save valuable time and create a broad range of analytics. This year, one coach at Roland-Garros told Infosys that it would take him three to four hours to do what the app could accomplish in minutes.

Players can examine their own serves, returns, points, and errors to better understand their own performance. Or they can use the app to scout their opponents and search for weaknesses. There are no restrictions on accessing video of any player, including footage from the previous two years. The French Tennis Federation, organizers of Roland-Garros, insisted on that openness.

Outside of the game, the app has features that allow players to manage other needs, including booking practice courts, communicating with tournament staff, or getting tax forms for their prize money.

The Infosys tennis platform team is also looking at gamification as another way to present analytics. Future app versions could include a quiz that challenges players on how much they know about their opponent’s tendencies. Is a player facing a double break point early in the set more likely to try a strong or conservative first serve? Does that player like to serve wide or down the T in certain situations? A dry piece of information can be delivered in a more engaging way.

The wish list for future versions also includes a wider selection of camera angles. Currently, just the broadcast angles are available to the players. The ideal version of the portal would provide access to footage from all 10 or so cameras around the court for every play.

The AI algorithms could then choose the best angle based on the goal of the viewer: Whether they wanted to see the serve or return or study a player’s posture at a given moment — how a torso twists during a swing or the timing of the player’s jump. A player could also choose specific moments to watch from multiple angles.

This is the second version of the Infosys players’ and coaches’ app. The first was introduced at the 2019 ATP World Tour. Eventually, this level of data — and with this immediacy — could be available to every player and coach on a regular basis. The only limiting factors are the cameras and amount of technology in place on each court.

“The players are thrilled that this possibility exists,” Subramanian said. “They don’t want this only for a single event or a single Grand Slam. They want this for all the tennis events possible. Why restrict it?”

Behind the #15Love Experience: This blog series celebrates the spirit of collaboration and innovation that went into shaping the Roland-Garros 2020 digital landscape. Follow Infosys on LinkedIn to hear stories of passion and purpose from the teams at Infosys and French Tennis Federation (FFT), as they talk about the next normal in experiences, partnerships, technology and branding.