The US Open is using AI-powered models to come up with a Power Index at this year's tournament, and the results so far highlight on the downside of this feature.
The concept of Power Rankings in sports can be subjective sometimes because less data may be available or people's overall decision-making could be based on different criteria to determine the player with the highest numerical strength.
Well, at this year's US Open, the use of artificial intelligence means we don't need to work different calculations to determine the Power Rankings for this year's US Open. AI models built with IBM will assess player performances and analyze specific statistical categories to give a rating they call a Power Index.
At the start of the tournament, Power Rankings create buzz and discussions among tennis fans as they engage in never-ending debates on who they believe should rank higher. But the US Open's AI-generated Power Index for each player has been very questionable and absurd.
As we have noted so far, the Top 10 players tend to dominate in this topic as almost invariably, they are the in-form players who have strung some momentum coming to a big tournament like the US Open. Experience is also a decisive factor in forming such interpretations on who is the favorite and who is not.
Daniil Medvedev has not had a similar degree of success on hardcourts this month as he did in the first half of the season or in recent years. But having won the US Open just two years ago, it is grossly misleading that an AI-powered tech ranked Medvedev in 19th place in the latest Power Index ahead of his opening match.
What is even nonsensical, Medvedev ranked 5th three days ago when the draw was released. But the Index Over Time graph that is on the US Open website shows a massive fall to 14th and then to 19th. Medvedev has a lower Power Index than Lorenzo Musetti (whom he defeated in Toronto and Cincinnati).
His compatriot Andrey Rublev, has a Top-10 Power Index having lost in the opening round in both Masters doubleheaders. Could this be a result of a system glitch as such discrepancies barely reflect the accurate and true status of player performances?
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