Wearable technology has now become the center of discussion in Australian Tennis courts. During the Australian Open tournament, top players like Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Aryna Sabalenka had to remove their fitness trackers before the matches.
Following the incident, players have said, “Australian Open should reconsider its policy banning wrist-worn fitness trackers.” The Australian Open is organised by Tennis Australia, which confirmed that wearable fitness trackers are not allowed in the Grand Slams. However, organisers claim that they are reconsidering the policy to allow wearable devices in upcoming tournaments.
Top Players Are Barred from Wearing Fitness Trackers
On January 26, Jannik Sinner was asked to remove the Whoop device before his fourth-round match against Luciano Darderi. A day before, Alcaraz was asked to remove his fitness trackers by the Tournament officials during the match. Earlier in the tournament, Aryna Sabalenka also faced the same issues.
Players have expressed disagreements with the policy and urged the tournament organisers to reconsider allowing wearable fitness trackers. In 2024, the ATP and WTA Tours had already changed their policy, allowing the use of wearable fitness trackers in the matches.
Why Australian Open Don’t Allow Trackers in Grand Slams?
Many high-intensity sports authorities have allowed the use of wearable technology in matches to monitor the health of players. Majorly, it is used in football and soccer to confirm if the player is in the “red zone” or not. The International Tennis Federation approved the use of the Whoop device in December 2025. However, they remain banned from “Grand Slam Tournaments.”
The reason behind the policy remains unclear. However, experts claim that players with better resources and fame can have an advantage over others. Wearable fitness trackers like Whoop devices provide in-match data, which can give an upper hand, and it will be a biased take if other players don’t have access to such devices.
There can be other reasons too, as no official explanation has been disclosed, considering the policy.
Whoop Is Unhappy About It….
Alcaraz, Sinner, and Sabalenka were wearing a Whoop device, which they had to remove during the match. This move seems to upset the screenless wearable company. Whoop said, “Athletes have a fundamental right to know their own performance and health during competition. Blocking access to personal information does not protect sports.”
Whoop founder Will Ahmed went a step ahead and claimed this policy as “ridiculous” in one of his X posts.
However, we can understand the company’s bitter response to the Australian Open policy. Since 2024, Aryna Sabalenka has been Whoop’s brand ambassador, and she has even released a video praising the recovery features of the Whoop wearable device. Sabalenka has always supported the use of wearable devices in matches and has been vocal about it.
Should Wearable Fitness Trackers Be Allowed at “Grand Slams”?
While several sports allow the use of wearable technology, it becomes hard to separate a few tournaments and treat them as exceptions. Recently, the Australian Open allowed pods that provide in-match coaching, moving towards technology integration into sports.
However, allowing wearable technology can surely create bias for one player, but the Australian Open needs to find a middle ground. As technology is evolving, wearables are expected to enter every aspect of our lives in the near future.
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