Wimbledon will follow the US and Aussie Opens in employing replay systems.
Replay technology are set to arrive at Wimbledon in the upcoming tournament.
Athletes will gain the option to contest specific calls made by the chair umpire, mirroring the protocol currently in operation at each of the US Open and the Australian Open.
The new system is slated for use on the main stadium and Court One throughout the Championships and on the remaining featured courts when they are staging singles matches.
This move arrives only a season following the All England Club introduced ELC, which effectively ended the longstanding tradition of line officials.
What Can Be Reviewed?
Players cannot to challenge the accuracy of the electronic line calling, but they can request the umpire to review other decisions, such as:
- Whether a tennis ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a ball made contact with an rival's racket or person during play.
- Possible hindrance end of a point.
Notably, there is no cap on the number of challenges a competitor can initiate.
A Recent Example
An illustrative example took place in Indian Wells recently, where Daniil Medvedev used the video challenge against his opponent.
The British player conceded it was a difficult call for the umpire, but believed his opponent had "used the regulations effectively."
Official Aurelie Tourte watched a replay and determined the player was guilty of interference, awarding the point to Medvedev.
Broader Adoption
Video reviews aren't exclusive to major tournaments. The system was adopted at the American major for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Additionally, it is becoming more common on the women’s WTA Tour, and by the coming year the men's ATP Tour plans to have the system in place at every one of its tournaments.
Further Updates
A further innovation at Wimbledon this year will be the addition of visual indicators on scoreboards to support the verbal announcements from the ELC system.
This addresses situations where the crowd have occasionally been uncertain if a shot was out or in.
Finally, with exactly 100 days to go until the start of the tournament, the AELTC have further revealed an expansion in daily attendance at the qualifiers in the qualifying venue.
