Tempe, AZ – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) and PlayReplay, Inc., are pleased to announce an agreement to create the first-ever Electronic Line Calling (ELC) pilot program for college tennis. Under the agreement, PlayReplay will provide its ELC technology across five events during the 2024-25 college tennis season. These five events include two individual singles and doubles championships during the fall season and the 2025 ITA Division I Men’s and Women’s National Team Indoor Championships in February 2025. Additionally, PlayReplay’s ELC technology will be tested at a series of Division I dual matches in March.
The pilot program will test PlayReplay’s ELC system in both a roving umpire environment as well as during matches that utilize chair umpires. PlayReplay and the ITA will host on-court demonstrations and “Q&A” sessions with ITA member coaches during each of the pilot events. Feedback from coaches and players on all aspects related to the PlayReplay ELC system will be critical to the success of this pilot and to achieving full implementation within the college tennis system.
In July of 2023, the ITA began an extensive request for proposal (RFP) process in search of technology partners interested in serving ITA-member colleges and universities with accurate, affordable, and dependable electronic line calling and/or review technology. This search was aimed to assist players and officials in their efforts to ensure accurate line calls and improve sportsmanship throughout the US collegiate tennis system. Through the use of pilot programs like this one, the ITA hopes to successfully introduce ELC technology on a limited basis within the college tennis space by the 2025-26 academic season. Current ITA policies require that in order for an ELC System to be approved by the ITA and used during a college tennis dual match or tournament, that system must achieve ITF certification, complete a rigorous ITA pilot program, and ultimately be incorporated within the playing rules for college tennis.
The PlayReplay ELC system utilizes a minimally intrusive camera solution that provides users a high level of necessary player and ball tracking data, “challenges” to line calls, a visual representation of where balls land, and a ruling on the call. The PlayReplay system also provides players and coaches access to a wealth of player analysis data, including shot speed, court positioning, in/out percentage, and many other useful metrics. By utilizing coaching features provided by the system, players will also be able to select target areas and gain insight into their accuracy during a training session.
“The ITA is thrilled to take this next step in our goal of providing accurate and affordable electronic line calling technology for college tennis,” said Cory Brooks, ITA Managing Director. “Hans Lundstam and the entire PlayReplay team have been great to work with throughout the first year of this process. We are excited by the potential of the PlayReplay ELC system in helping further our progress towards improved sportsmanship and fair play.”
“We are excited to take the first steps in offering a scalable ELC solution for colleges and universities across the U.S.,” said Hans Lundstam, CEO of PlayReplay. “College tennis is fiercely competitive, and we believe our solution will significantly enhance the game for the student-athletes.
Lundstam continues by stating, “We are honored to have gained the ITA’s trust, especially after their thorough evaluation of technologies in this field over the past year. The ITA demonstrates remarkable professionalism and a sincere commitment to advancing the sport through cutting-edge technology. With the ITA’s forward-thinking approach and dedicated team, we are thrilled about the future of this program and the prospects for U.S. college tennis.”
Upcoming 2024-25 ITA / PlayReplay Pilot Program Events
September 21-29, 2024 ITA Men’s All-American Championships Hosted by the University of Tulsa (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
November 7-10, 2024 ITA Division I Women’s West Sectional Championships Hosted by the University of Southern California (Los Angeles, California)
February 7-11, 2025 ITA Division I Women’s National Team Indoor Championship Hosted by Northwestern University (Evanston, Illinois) Hosted by the University of Illinois (Champaign, Illinois)
February 14-18, 2025 ITA Division I Men’s National Team Indoor Championship Hosted by SMU (Dallas, Texas) Hosted by Baylor University (Waco, Texas)
March 9-16, 2025 Dual Match Play Pepperdine University (Malibu, California)
The ITA is the governing body of college tennis and a coaches association, both an advocate and an authority for the sport and its members. The ITA is committed to serving college tennis and returning the leaders of tomorrow while promoting both the athletic and academic achievements of the collegiate tennis community. The ITA, founded in 1956, is comprised of more than 2,000 men’s and women’s varsity tennis teams representing more than 1,250 institutions, 3,000 college tennis coaches, 1,400 college tennis officials, while administering numerous regional and national championships, and the ITA College Tennis Rankings for 20,000 college varsity student-athletes across five levels of play. The ITA also bolsters an industry-leading awards program for players and coaches to honor excellence in academics, leadership, and sportsmanship. Keep up with all of the excitement around college tennis by visiting WeAreCollegeTennis.com and following the ITA on Facebook, Twitter (X), Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn.
About PlayReplay: PlayReplay aims to democratize tennis tracking, making it accessible to all. PlayReplays’ advanced technology promotes fairness across every level of competition and equips coaches with critical data to better support their players. To date, PlayReplay has been utilized in approximately 200,000 matches, generating approximately 80 million accumulated line calls.
