Wimbledon Embraces Video Challenge System This Season.
The tournament joins the American and Australian Opens in employing video review technology.
Replay systems are set to arrive at Wimbledon in the upcoming tournament.
Players will gain the ability to contest particular rulings made by the chair umpire, following the protocol currently in place at each of the American Grand Slam and the Aussie major.
This technology is slated for use on the main stadium and the number one court throughout the tournament and on the other four show courts when they are hosting singles contests.
This move arrives only a year after the AELTC introduced ELC, which brought an end to the longstanding tradition of line judges.
What Can Be Reviewed?
Players cannot to challenge the call of the electronic line calling, but they can request the umpire to review other decisions, including:
- Whether a tennis ball has bounced twice.
- Whether a shot touched an opponent's racquet or body during play.
- Potential hindrance at the conclusion of a point.
Notably, there is no cap on the number of reviews a competitor can initiate.
Case in Point
A recent incident occurred in a recent tournament recently, where Daniil Medvedev initiated the review system against his opponent.
The British player admitted it was a difficult situation for the official, but thought his rival had "played the rules effectively."
Official Aurelie Tourte watched a replay and ruled the player was responsible for interference, granting the point to Medvedev.
Broader Adoption
This technology aren't exclusive to major tournaments. It has been in use at the US Open for two years and the Australian 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.
Other Changes
A further innovation at The Championships this year will be the introduction of graphical cues on scoreboards to complement the audio calls from the electronic line calling system.
This addresses situations where the crowd have sometimes been unsure if a ball was in or out.
Finally, with exactly a century of days remaining until the start of the Championships, the AELTC have further announced an increase in daily attendance at the qualifiers in the qualifying venue.
