Robo Player

I just have to share a bit of personal excitement this week. The Racquet above is the new Babolat Pure Drive Play. Or as I prefer to think of it, Robo Cop's racquet of choice. This thing is the first racquet to have sensors, a gyroscope and an accelerometer built in to record data. It can pinpoint RPMs, frequency of stroke types, where on the string bed you make contact, etc. It sends this data to your smart phone or computer wirelessly or via USB. The reason I am excited about this is the fact that I got selected to play test this thing in the near future! I am very intrigued at the training potential a tool like this offers. Coaches would have access to a wealth of data at the touch of a button and could access it in real time. You could get immediate feedback on the impacts of alterations to stroke mechanics, movement patterns, etc. I'm not sure about the actual competition use (Babolat did receive an ITF waiver making it legal for all levels of play in 2014), but I do think it has tremendous training potential.

An interesting aspect that clearly hints at their intention to get this into the hands of developing juniors is Babolat's implementation of global leader boards. Just like most new video games, you will be able to see how your stats rank against everyone else in the world that is using the Pure Drive Play. Think you have amazing topspin? Let's see how you stack up globally. Just when I felt good about my game, this will get here just in time to put me in my place!  

Only time will tell if this will be a novelty or if it will truly revolutionize the way players and coaches train and analyze development. Until then, I'm just excited to combine Super Mario and tennis in a single package now.