Player Analysis Technology: Kitris Kit

 

Originally published on 09/09/14

Six months have now passed since the ITF introduced Rule 31 to allow the monitored use of Player Analysis Technology, opening the door to a new wave of equipment that collects, stores, transmits, analyses or communicates player performance. We take a closer look at the approved PAT products that give an insight into how this ruling could change the way we watch, play and coach the sport for future generations.

Swiss start-up company Kitris made a small piece of tennis history by becoming the first company to register a PAT device back in October 2013, two months before Rule 31 came into effect. The Kitris Kit wristband serves as a scorecard, an audio log of how points were won and lost, and a voice recorder that captures memos mid-match. To ensure the wristband does not breach ITF Rule 30, which denies on-court coaching, the log and memos cannot be retrieved on court.

Plug the Kit into your computer, however, and you can find a breakdown of every point played, allowing you to evaluate your strengths, weaknesses, how you deal with break points and set points, and the time spent on court per match.

For fans of the ATP and WTA tours, this information is what we expect when watching tennis, but to see the same analysis applied to your own game promises to be a bit of an eye-opener. Currently still in development, the plan is to analyse data via the Kitris server, resulting in an objective overview of relevant feedback to give the player greater insight into their performance.

This is an extract from 'Technically Speaking' by Michael Beattie which appeared in tennishead Volume 5 Issue 4. Subscribe to the magazine today or download tennishead on iTunes.

 

Now get the WORLD’S BEST TENNIS MAGAZINE here