Tennis Technology Tuesday
There is a new digital platform forthcoming for USTA tennis engagement. This was announced as one of the strategic priorities of the USTA ongoing restructuring initiative. There is also evidence of the forthcoming underlying infrastructure on the USTA web page. At least part of the new initiative will be known as Serve Tennis.
Build and Optimize Best in Class Digital Infrastructure and
USTA Strategic Priority #3
Platforms
I have been daydreaming about functions and features of that I would most like to see in the next generation tennis digital platform. Today I am focusing on this exclusively on what I would most want to see from a new USTA tournament consumer mobile application.
I am assuming that the basic features currently implemented in TennisLink would be included in a new app by default. However, merely replicating what TennisLink currently does in another system would not achieve “Best in Class” objectives. The following features are on my wish list any of which would move the needle closer to that goal.
- Digital Match Check In. Congestion around the tournament desk is a frequent issue. Additionally sometimes there is confusion and mistakes over whether a player has checked in for a match or not. The option for digital check in solves all of these issues.
- Order of Play List. I have been told to “hang close” to the tournament desk at a tournament where my placement in the match queue was more than a full turnover of the courts available for use. Having the match order of play list within the app would enable a player to watch an interesting match on a far flung court and keep an eye on their upcoming match placement at the same time.
- Digital Court Assignment. On the COVID-19 era, many UTR tournaments are issuing court assignments using digital methods. This would be a great feature to have even once the pandemic is over. Tournaments would have to figure out a way to cope with ball distribution and collection, but this would be generally a great feature to have as an option.
- Digital Score Reporting. Enabling players to report scores digitally while still on the court could assist tournaments with increased throughput on court turnover between matches.
- Active Court Assignment List. A great feature would be the opportunity to see all the matches that are currently on court at a given site. No longer would a spectator have to pester the tournament desk to find out which court their upcoming opponent is playing on, it would be right there on the app. Another benefit of this is the ability to look up who is playing on a particular court for casually observed matches that look compelling.
- Player Profiles. Customizable player profiles would be a great feature in any context. If the profile included a picture, then spectators could tell one player from another when casually observing an interesting match. Linking this in with information in conjunction with the tournament makes this less creepy from a cyber stalker perspective.
- Push Notifications. Tournament communication or notifications that impact players should go out via push notification targeted to the impacted population. Text messaging and phone calls should be a last resort. A push notification that the draws are posted would be terrific, for example.
- Tournament/Site Communication. The ability within the app for a player to formally communicate with the tournament director or a particular site. For example, if there is a scheduling conflict in matches between sites. This provides a clear place for the player to make sure the tournament is aware of the concern and have a record of the communication. Email does not cut it.
- Doubles Partner Bulletin Board. Right now when a player is looking for a doubles partner, they have to text their friends or use the other 3rd party social media groups in support of that endeavor. This should be built into the infrastructure. This feature should be open to players who have not yet entered an event.
Those are my top wish list items off the top of my head. I am sure that there are a lot of other great ideas. I would love to hear what other players would like to see in the perfect tournament player engagement platform.
- USTA Announces Sweeping Plan to Reorganize and Prioritize Its Structure, Events, and Activities to Grow the Game and Service the Broader Tennis Industry, USTA Official Press Release, hosted on Open Court website, viewed 8/2/2020.
- Serve Tennis: New Tools for a New Future, USTA National Website, viewed 8/16/2020.
You are actually not missing much. I usually use the USTA web site from a mobile browser from my iOS device.
App for android phones!
Currently USTA does not have an Android equivalent of the iPhone USTA Mobile App.
As a tournament director I have been through an initial Serve Tennis training. It seems to me that it is mainly designed as a facility management system. It allows users to create a website, allow players to reserve courts, set up programming for online registration and to run tournaments. The current contacts module only allows for emails to players but text messages are in development. Players will sign up for Serve Tennis accounts, but in the initial presentation it did not seem much different from having a USTA account. Further training sessions may reveal more robust features. I was very interested in an app that was being used by TDs earlier this year called Match! Tennis, which seemed to have many of the features you mention, including a doubles matching feature, digital check in and digital match assignment. Unfortunately I did not get to use it, as our tournaments were cancelled this spring. I do know the app designer was interested in working with the new td software. As we begin the process to apply for tournaments under the new USTA tournament system I will be learning more. As a TD the features you are asking for are very appealing to me. I will say as a group TD’s do not embrace change. I remember when the USTA introduced the ability to run tournament desks live online it took 2 years and a mandate from the Texas Section to require that the feature be used. I found it to be an excellent upgrade and of great benefit to players. I am very interested in hearing the features players want.
Thanks so much for sharing your observations. My own examination of Serve Tennis is limited since I do not run a facility or tournaments. I am holding out hope that digital infrastructure that enhances the tennis consumer experience is either already under development or will be considered in the future.