A co-innovation project in collaboration with
About
Since on-court coaching debuted in women’s tennis in 2009, the ability to call a coach on court during a match has been embraced by many players to help them achieve their full potential. In 2015, the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) allowed the coaches to bring a WTA-authorized mobile device on court during coaching breaks for the first time, providing the design team with a unique opportunity to intervene.
In the past, conversation between the coaches and their players was based on opinion. Coaches did not have any objective tools to support their observations. Time constraints combined with the high pressure of the game makes it imperative that the brief communication between players and coaches be efficient and informed by accurate data.
SAP Tennis Analytics for Coaches is a tool that facilitates this communication between players and coaches. It is a tablet app that gathers data in real-time from ten on-court cameras and the umpire's scoring of the match, translating them into strategic insights. Through insightful information and simple visualization, players and coaches are able to communicate objectively with a tool they mutually trust.
The app was launched in August 2015 at the Bank of the West Classic tennis tournament, where 70% of the player community used it during live matches and for player scouting. It was also used by Angelique Kerber, the tournament winner and world number 11 at the time (She recently rose to world number 2 after winning her first Grand Slam at the Australian Open 2016). Today, you can see the app in action during televised WTA matches around the world and witness how it has transformed communication within the professional tennis community.
Real-Time Features
Match Stats
Side-by-side comparison of the full list of match stats for both players, updated every 15 seconds
Scoring
Scoring data that analyzes the player’s service performance, success rate in closing out a game while serving, and number of break points saved
Tracking
Tracking data which shows the player’s serve direction and placement on the court, contact point for returning a serve, and placement of rally shots
Screenshots
Usage in Real Match
In this televised match at the Rogers Cup 2015 in Toronto, World No. 40 Daria Gavrilova was playing against World No. 7 Lucie Safarova. Daria's coach
was using the app when she was behind in the first set. Wanna guess
who won the match?
Daria Gavrilova caused an upset against her higher ranked opponent Lucie Safarova and prevailed 4-6, 7-5, 7-5.
Daria's coach, Nicole Pratt, explained how she used the app during the match,
"The biggest key for me as a coach is you're trying to fast-track a player's development and your player's experience. If I'm able to provide evidence
that cannot be disputed, then I think the learning curve of the player is
that much quicker...
Up until midway through the second set, Safarova had hit every serve on the first point of her service games down the tee. And at 30-all, the same every time. So I could go out there and tell Dasha, you have got to cover the middle. On those points, it's highly likely she's going down the middle. You can't get beaten there because chances are she's going there...
Now that we're real time, I can pass on that information and the player can adjust. The psychology of that for the player is 'Okay, I know what to do now.' The key is simplicity."