ITF

The Technical Commission has again been active throughout the year, guiding the activities of the Technical department. As was the case last year, the principal topic of discussion in 2013 was the use and regulation of Player Analysis Technology. The Sport Science & Medicine Commission (SSMC) has been active in several areas in 2013. This includes the review and development of rules relating to rest between successive matches on the same day and hyperandrogenism. The 'rest rule' specifies the minimum time that a player who has competed is given prior to his/ her next match, and has been established based on the need for players to be able to eat, drink and digest food without significant impairment to performance. Rules for hyperandrogenism are necessary because tennis is a sport in which a hyperandrogenic girl/woman would have androgen levels that would confer a competitive advantage. Members of the SSMC gave presentations to the ITF Worldwide Coaches Conference in Cancun, Mexico in November. SCIENCE & TECHNICAL In its centenary year, the ITF ratified a new rule – Rule 31 – which will allow the use of Player Analysis Technology in tennis. The Court Pace Classification Programme continued to expand, with 260 products classified by the ITF, and the ITF's portable device for measuring court pace – the SPRite – went into production. Player Analysis Technology consists of any equipment that collects, stores, transmits, analyses or communicates information on player performance, and can include items that the player wears (such as heart-rate monitors), or carries onto court (the racket) as well as devices located around the court (player tracking systems). From January 2014, ITF Approved Player Analysis Technology will be permitted for use in competition played under the Rules of Tennis. Data collected by Player Analysis Technology constitutes coaching information under the Rules of Tennis, and therefore the use of such technology during play will be restricted in accordance with the existing Coaching rule. This means that a player shall not have access to the data during the match, except when play is suspended and when coaching is allowed. The ITF Court Pace Classification Programme continued to grow. By the end of the year, 260 court surface brands were classified by the ITF Technical Centre. In October, the production model of the SPRite went on sale at the FSB sports facilities trade fair in Cologne. The SPRite is an easy-to-use, portable device which will enable widespread measurement of court pace rating (CPR). The Technical Centre carried out accuracy testing of Hawk-Eye at Davis Cup and Fed Cup World Group ties throughout the year. Additionally, court pace testing to assess the speed of the surface at Davis Cup and Fed Cup ties was conducted in France, USA, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, Japan and Czech Republic. A total of 297 brands of ball were approved for 2013, which included 97 Stage 1, 2 and 3 introductory balls. The Technical Centre continues to supplement formal ball approval with market testing of brands collected from tournaments and shop-bought; 1,630 of these were tested, comprising 132 different brands of ball. The Technical Centre worked with the Introduction to Tennis Task Force to revise the specifications for identification of Stage 1 balls – mandating yellow cloth with a green dot. These changes will be implemented in the 2014 Rules of Tennis. Quality assurance of testing standards remains integral to the Technical Centre's day-to-day activities. The Technical Centre retained its ISO 9001:2008 quality assurance standard in 2013 following a British Standards Institute audit in February. The Technical Centre promotes an open and productive relationship with the tennis industry through the ITF Foundation. The number of members in 2013 increased to 37. 260 297 Classified court products Ball brands approved 28 SCIENCE & TECHNICAL: SCIENCE & TECHNICAL 29 In its centenary year, the ITF ratified a new rule which will allow the use of Player Analysis Technology in tennis.

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