Game, set, AI: match-changing insights at the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge
Valorem Reply partnered with Microsoft and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) to deliver real-time AI-driven analytics that enhanced player strategy, coaching decisions, and audience engagement at the world’s premier women’s tennis team competition.
#AI-Driven Analytics
#Microsoft Azure
#Billie Jean King Cup
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The challenge
To equip coaches and players with AI-powered insights from live data, enhancing pre-match preparation, real-time courtside decisions, and post-match analysis.
SCENARIO
A need for smarter match intelligence in elite tennis
The Billie Jean King Cup had established itself as the world’s leading women’s international team tennis competition, known for its high level of play and global visibility. As the event evolved, organizers identified a growing opportunity to complement the on-court action with advanced technology that could support real-time coaching and enrich the overall experience. While traditional video analysis and post-match statistics were already part of team routines, the next step was to explore how real-time data could be captured, processed, and shared during live play. The ITF aimed to introduce a new layer of insight, delivered directly to coaches and players in the moment. This ambition called for a solution capable of integrating various data sources, leveraging AI to generate insights, and presenting them through a user-friendly interface - all while supporting the dynamics of a live, international sporting event.
THE SOLUTION
A real-time analytics app built on Microsoft Azure
Together with Microsoft and the ITF, Valorem Reply developed a real-time analytics application using Microsoft Azure's Data & AI services to support performance analysis throughout the Billie Jean King Cup. The application ingests data from high-speed cameras and court-level systems, processing it instantly via Azure’s scalable cloud infrastructure. This enables coaches and players not only to access real-time courtside insights, but also to prepare more effectively before matches and conduct deeper analysis afterwards.
Microsoft Copilot was integrated in 2025 to enable natural language interaction with performance data, helping teams explore patterns and gain contextual insights during play. A custom desktop application was deployed on Microsoft Surface tablets, giving coaches live access to evolving match data at courtside.
The application featured four key dashboards, each focused on a different area of analysis:
- Serve Dashboard – highlighting serve speed, placement, and consistency.
- Return Dashboard – showing return patterns, depth, and angles.
- Hit Point Dashboard – mapping ball contact points to reveal player tendencies.
- Court Coverage Dashboard – analyzing player movement and positioning.
The application was built for flexibility, allowing updates to accommodate new tournament formats and integration with external data sources.
HOW WE DID IT
Real-time architecture and cloud-native deployment
To deliver a performant, reliable application for live match analysis, Valorem Reply built a cloud-native architecture on Microsoft Azure. Live tracking data is streamed and processed in real time using event-driven services and serverless computing to ensure low latency. Azure Databricks handles data transformation, Azure Data Lake centralizes data storage, and Azure SQL Database enables fast access to insights in the courtside app. The desktop application, designed for Microsoft Surface tablets, features a responsive interface tailored for coaches and analysts. Microsoft Copilot was integrated via Azure AI Foundry, allowing natural language interaction with match data. Security and access are managed with Azure Active Directory, and system observability is ensured through Azure Monitor. CI/CD pipelines in Azure DevOps support rapid, reliable updates aligned with tournament needs.
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THE RESULTS
Measurable impact on coaching, strategy, and experience
The application significantly improved how coaching staff interacted with match data, streamlined courtside workflows, and elevated the overall experience for players and analysts.
Coaches are able to access live performance metrics during matches, eliminating reliance on delayed post-match reports
Real-time data availability enable immediate tactical adjustments based on serve patterns, player positioning, and return behaviors
Integration with Microsoft Copilot allow staff to query complex datasets in natural language, reducing the need for manual filtering or technical support
The intuitive dashboard layout minimize training needs and allow seamless adoption across all participating national teams during the event
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) is the world governing body of tennis, responsible for overseeing the rules of the game, organizing international competitions, and promoting the global development of the sport. Founded in 1913, the ITF manages key events such as the Billie Jean King Cup, Davis Cup, and the Olympic and Paralympic tennis tournaments. With a mission to grow and sustain tennis worldwide, the ITF works with over 210 national associations to support player pathways, officiating, integrity, and innovation across all levels of the game.
The Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge is the women’s World Cup of Tennis. Previously known as the Fed Cup, it is the largest annual international team competition in women’s sport, with a record 146 nations entered in 2025.
Billie Jean King Cup Limited is a partnership between the International Tennis Federation and TWG Global created to deliver transformative investment and innovation to the Billie Jean King Cup, the women’s World Cup of Tennis. Bringing together expertise and experience from the tennis, business, and entertainment industries, its core mission is to grow and leverage the world’s most popular annual team competition for women as a platform for positive change.
Valorem Reply, part of the Reply group, is a prioritized Microsoft Cloud Solutions Partner focused on transforming businesses into intelligent enterprises and helping nonprofits achieve more with AI enabled, cloud native solutions, strategic business outcome focus and user-led design. Through our teams of elite practitioners, our passion for doing good and the power of Microsoft technologies, we securely and rapidly transform the way our clients do business.