Wimbledon will follow the US and Aussie Opens in implementing replay technology.
Replay systems will make its debut at The Championships in the upcoming tournament.
Athletes are granted the right to challenge specific calls from the chair umpire, mirroring the practice already in use at each of the American Grand Slam and the Australian Open.
This innovation will be operational on the main stadium and Court One throughout the tournament and on the remaining featured courts when they are staging singles contests.
This development comes just a season following the AELTC introduced ELC, which effectively ended the longstanding tradition of line judges.
Scope of Challenges
Players will not be permitted to dispute the accuracy of the ELC system, but they can ask for the official to re-examine other decisions, such as:
- Whether a ball has bounced twice.
- Whether a shot touched an rival's racket or person on the way past.
- Potential interference end of a rally.
Notably, there will be an unlimited number on the number of reviews a competitor can ask for.
Practical Application
A recent case occurred in Indian Wells last week, where a top player initiated the video challenge against Jack Draper.
Draper conceded it was a tough situation for the umpire, but thought his rival had "used the regulations quite well."
The umpire watched a replay and ruled Draper was guilty of interference, awarding the rally to his opponent.
Growing Trend
Video reviews aren't exclusive to Grand Slams. The system was adopted at the US Open since 2023 and the Australian Open this year.
Furthermore, it is increasingly prevalent on the WTA circuit, and by next season the ATP circuit plans to have the system implemented at every one of its events.
Additional Innovations
Another innovation at The Championships this year involves the addition of visual indicators on displays to complement the audio calls from the ELC system.
This solves instances where the crowd have sometimes been uncertain if a shot was out or in.
In other news, with exactly 100 days remaining until the start of the Championships, organizers have also revealed an increase in daily attendance at the qualifying competition in Roehampton.
