IT major Infosys has roped in tennis star Rafael Nadal as ambassador for the brand and Infosys’ Digital Innovation, in a three-year partnership. 

To mark Nadal’s first-ever collaboration with a digital services company, Infosys and Nadal’s coaching team are developing an AI-powered match analysis tool. This personalised tool will be available in real time to Nadal’s coaching team to simultaneously track insights from his live matches, when he is back on tour, along with historical data from his earlier matches. 

Rafael Nadal said, “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 for a billion global fans and truly empowered all players on the tour with analytics that they could have only dreamt of a few years ago.” 

Previously, as the digital innovation partner for the ATP Tour, Roland-Garros, Australian Open, and The International Tennis Hall of Fame, Infosys has helped reimagine the tennis ecosystem for fans globally by leveraging AI, cloud, data analytics, and digital experiences. 

Commenting on the move, Sanjay Mehta, Joint CEO, of Mirum India, said, “After being closely associated with tennis with various partnerships, roping in Nadal is a good forward extension. This provides high visibility and projects Infosys as a global brand. Although it’s in the B2B business, there also is a need to break the clutter, signing an ambassador would make them stand out among its peers. The announcement is already making noise and making people curious, which is a good sign.” 

Heritage brands

“The collaboration is seamless, with both Infosys and Nadal being heritage brands in their own fields. Infosys already has a backend association with tennis with its service offerings, front staging it with a face like Nadal, which will push the case forward,” marketing and branding consultant, Harish Bijoor, said. 

Previously too, companies have made such moves — when Accenture signed with golfer Tiger Woods. Albeit, the company ended its arrangement as Woods was involved in a scandal. Bijoor notes that it is a risk one has to take while appointing an ambassador. 

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