ITF continues World Tennis Number educational efforts with college coaches at the sport’s biggest championships

LAKE NONA, FL - After being adopted by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) as the “Exclusive Official Rating of College Tennis” in January, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) has continued to offer educational opportunities surrounding the World Tennis Number (WTN) to collegiate coaches at some of the sport’s biggest championships.

In May, representatives from the ITF and United States Tennis Association (USTA) combined to offer several educational sessions regarding the WTN rating at the 2023 ITA Coaches Convention. Collegiate coaches heard about the accuracy and the future of WTN within the collegiate space. Coaches asked questions and provided feedback directly to ITF and USTA officials about how the WTN rating can continue to improve college tennis.

In 2023, both of the NCAA Singles national champions were among the highest-rated collegiate players according to the WTN rating, and throughout the entire draw, the accuracy of the WTN rating could be seen match-over-match.

Heading into the 2023-24 collegiate tennis season, the ITA will be utilising the WTN rating as one tool for selection and seeding into ITA tournaments, including the ITA National Summer Championships (August 11-15), the ITA Men’s and Women’s All-American Championships (September 30-October 8), and the ITA National Fall Championships (November 1-5).

Paul Lifton, Lead Project Manager for the ITF World Tennis Number says: "ITF are very excited about working with USTA and ITA to bring ITF World Tennis Number to US College Tennis. The accuracy and reliability of this new global tennis rating is being demonstrated in nations all around the world. The ITF's vision is to see ITF World Tennis Number empowering and supporting Federations, players, parents and coaches to find the best play opportunities and tournaments."

About the ITA – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) is the governing body and coaches association of college tennis, both an advocate and an authority for the sport and its members. Comprised of 1,260 colleges and universities, 20,000 student-athletes, 1,700 varsity programs, 3,000 coaches, and 1,350 college tennis officials, the ITA empowers college tennis coaches at all levels to deliver vibrant tennis programs that are vital to their college communities and transformational to their student-athletes. Follow the Spring 2023 college tennis season on the ITA website and ITA social channels on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube.