Infosys taps tennis ace Rafael Nadal as brand ambassador

Information technology services firm Infosys Ltd on Wednesday tapped tennis star Rafael Nadal as its brand ambassador for a period of three years.

Nadal will be partnering with a digital services company for the first time, Infosys said in a statement.

“I’m very happy to work closely with Infosys, as they work to not only evolve the experience of tennis to the times, but also empower people in our communities to be part of a brighter future. It has transformed the tennis experience and truly empowered players on the tour with analytics,” Nadal said.

Infosys, which is the digital innovation partner for the ATP Tour, Roland-Garros, Australian Open, and non-profit International Tennis Hall of Fame, said it has been leveraging artificial intelligence (AI), cloud, data analytics to help reimagine the tennis ecosystem. 

In June, it launched carbon tracker, a program that allows players to track and offset emissions from their travel on tour in a first-of-its-kind sustainable tech in any sport.

As part of the deal, Nadal’s coaching team will develop an AI-powered tool to track and analyze insights from his live matches and compare those with data from his earlier matches.

Salil Parekh, chief executive officer and managing director of Infosys, said, “It is an honor to welcome Rafa – one of the world’s most respected champion athletes and humanitarians – as an ambassador for Infosys. He is someone who personifies the spirit of always evolving, never giving up, utmost dedication and determination to give the very best in every situation. We are inspired by his approach, and it reflects our own aspirations to continuously evolve and always remain relevant for our clients.”

In the past, Infosys has rolled out a slew of technologies to change the way tennis is played, watched, and experienced. For players and coaches, it has developed platforms that use video and statistics to improve training and game analysis. It has also deployed AI to help broadcasters provide engaging content on matches.

Infosys has brought in a new dimension to tennis fandom by tapping digital technologies such as mixed reality, virtual social interactions, and 3D art museums that aim to bring the history and heritage of tennis to life, the company said in the statement.