'Not creating a level playing field': Whoop band explanation by TA described as 'PR BS'

(Getty/Quinn Rooney)

You wouldn't need to be the biggest tennis fan to have come across the controversy surrounding the ban on Whoop bands.

For those unaware, a Whoop band is a screenless fitness tracking device that can be worn just like a regular watch, with its purpose to monitor players' body strain, recovery, and sleep to help optimise performance. It is designed to collect data that is then turned into suggestions and insights.

Although they may seem harmless, world No.1s Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka, along with back-to-back Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner, were told to remove their whoop bands by respective chair umpires before play at Melbourne Park.

"There is certain data that we would like to track a little bit on court. It's not for the live thing," said Sinner when asked his thoughts on the ban. "It's more about what you can see after the match.

"It is data we would like to use also in practice sessions because from that you can practice with, like the heart rate, how many calories you burn, all those kind of things.

"I mean, the umpire asked me straight away if this (band) was the tracker. I said yes, and he said remove it. It's fine. There are other things we could use, like a vest, but that is a bit uncomfortable for me. You feel like you have something on the shoulders.

"Rules are rules, I understand. I won't use it again."

Company CEO, Will Ahmed, weighed in on the drama that unfolded.

"Ridiculous! Whoop is approved by the ITF for in-match use and poses no safety risk. Let athletes measure their bodies. Data isn't steroids!" he wrote on social media.

The First Serve has obtained a guide, which was sent out by Tennis Australia to players and coaches prior to the tournament, explaining the types of data available and how to access it:

The First Serve Live returns on Monday February 2nd at 8pm AEDT for its 18th year on the SEN Network/App, Australia's only dedicated weekly tennis program on commercial radio running through till the end of November.

Yet the 'fairness' section of that document doesn't quite stand up, according to a member of a WTA player's team, who wishes to remain unnamed.

"Players have to pay for their tracking data, and can't collect any data on their own. This same data TA are trading with USTA, not creating a level playing field if you are working with a smaller country," anonymous told The First Serve.

"I think, for starters, players should be allowed to monitor their health data.

"Then secondly, the fact that Tennis Australia gets all the data from ELC and players who play in that match have to pay up to $500 per match for their biomechanic data is absurd.

"Thirdly, from a fairness perspective, I find it unfair that Tennis Australia can trade that data with USTA/LTA so that those federations can have access to more data than someone from outside of those federations. An example is that Iga from Poland will not have the same access to data as an Australian, American, or Brit, which is unfair."

It was only a matter of time before Tennis Australia issued a statement on the matter, and on Wednesday, they did just that.

"Wearables are currently not permitted at Grand Slams," Tennis Australia said.

"The Australian Open is involved in ongoing discussions on how this situation could change.

"Some wearables provide athletes with an indication of internal load (such as heart rate), which can give them a 360-degree view of the work they're doing and how their bodies respond.

"In terms of other data provided to athletes and their teams at the AO, players can monitor key external load measures such as distance covered, changes of direction, high acceleration events and speed/spin of shots via Bolt 6."

Whoop became an official WTA partner five years ago, and the ATP has also given its tick of approval. It is also classified as an approved device under ITF rules.

"The reason why I was wearing that on court, because we received the email that we got approval from the ITF to wear this device," Sabalenka explained. "I didn't know that Grand Slams didn't come to a conclusion.

"I don't understand why, because the whole year we are wearing, on WTA tournaments, all the tournaments I play, we wear Whoop. It's just for tracking my health. I don't understand why Grand Slams are not allowing us to wear it, and I really hope that they will reconsider the decision."

A complex governance structure means the four Grand Slams can set different rules, as the Australian Open refuses to budge on its stance.

"Basically, Tennis Australia are saying that Whoop is providing live data on court, which is in no shape or form what we got as a team from Whoop or any of those trackers that were worn," said the same anonymous source.

"What Tennis Australia provides is some data on movement from the line tracking system, then they've got their own derived calculation for shot load, which is not up to scratch for what we want to do, and it's not individualised to different players, whereas a Whoop tracker does.

"The detailed data that you can purchase is $500 as well, so when they're saying it's provided for free for the athlete, they provide very minimal for free, and then you have to pay a lot for the detailed data. "The statement from Tennis Australia is a bit of PR BS."

In Tennis Australia's statement, the governing body clearly states that "wearables are not permitted", but they don't go into specifics about why there is actually a ban in the first place.

Will Ahmed fired back at Tennis Australia by posting a video on social media, explaining that their statement is "a direction contradiction" to the work done with the ITF, and went as far as to label the dispute as an "enormous scandal".

Sven Groeneveld, who famously coached Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanović, Monica Seles, and Mary Pierce to Grand Slam titles, founded a job platform for coaches, 'OrangeCoach', and is also the founder of the Professional Tennis Coaches Association.

Groeneveld, the current coach of world No.19 Karolína Muchova, reached out to The First Serve, making the point that despite on-court coaching rules being relaxed, it still hasn't moved the needle.

"Regarding wearables, I have been fighting for the players ever since we worked in the 1990s with the chest strap to get more access during match play. However, this was always held back due to unfair advantage and potential coaching protocols," he told The First Serve.

"Fast forward to today, we now have coaching on all levels permitted and still to this day, we have no access to wearables of our own choice. We are strictly limited to certain devices that are permitted for use by players on either tour: Whoop on the WTA and two other data-collecting devices on the ATP Tour.

"This is all solely to prevent players from making their own deals with companies that are specialists in wearable technology.

"The tours or the Grand Slams tend to protect their data rights and aggregate the entire field of players to sell it to the highest bidder.

"However, due to medical reasons and privilege laws, they can not or would not be able to disclose this data to a third party without full disclosure of the medical information of players, which may cause bigger problems. Their choice is control and not transparency.

"The PTPA is working hard on many issues that penalise or prevent players from optimising their personal career, including biometric data."

The First Serve Live returns weekly each Monday Night on the SEN Radio Network & SEN App.

SEN Network: SEN 1116am Melbourne, SEN 1170am Sydney, SENQ 693am Brisbane, SEN Gold Coast 1620am, SEN SA 1629am, SEN Tassie 1629am, SEN Top End 1611am, SEN Mt Gambier 1629am, SEN Goulbourn Valley 1260am, SEN Geelong, SEN Bendigo, SEN Ballarat, SEN Gippsland, SEN Sunraysia, SEN WA on the app in Perth, SEN Spirit 621am in Bunbury, SEN Spirit 621am in Bunbury, SEN Spirit 1494am in WA's South West, SEN Peel in Mandurah, and SEN Goldfields 1611am in Kalgoorlie and across WA in the Pilbara, Mid-West and Great Southern Regions, SEN Fanatic on the SEN App, SEN App worldwide