Ranking professional tennis players based on performance indicators: A data-driven approach

Abstract

Currently, the FedEx ATP (Association of Tennis Players) ranking based on points won in tournaments is the official ranking of professional tennis players. However, a more sophisticated ranking, which encompasses performance indicators, could be proposed having in mind the wide availability of indicators. To provide a possible alternative ranking, as a case study, we observed the professional tennis players in 2019 and three groups of indicators provided by the ATP: metrics of serve, metrics of return, and metrics under pressure on three courts: clay, grass, and hard. The chosen statistical methodology to create a novel ranking is the twofold I-distance method. The I-distance method has been employed with success for creating impartial and data-driven rankings. The twofold approach consists of the application of I-distance on two levels: on the level of indicators and on the level of previously created pillars. The results of such an approach will provide data-driven rankings based on performance indicators of tennis players on each individual surface and will enable the inspection of differences in tennis players’ performance.