Wimbledon will follow the US and Australian Opens in utilizing replay technology.
Replay systems will make its debut at Wimbledon this year.
Athletes will gain the option to contest certain calls made by the official, mirroring the system currently in place at each of the US Open and the Australian Open.
This innovation is slated for use on the main stadium and Court One throughout the Championships and on the other four featured courts when they are hosting singles contests.
This development comes just a year after the AELTC introduced electronic line calling, which terminated the longstanding tradition of line judges.
Reviewable Decisions
Players cannot to dispute the accuracy of the ELC system, but are allowed to request the umpire to re-examine other situations, including:
- If a ball has bounced twice.
- If a ball touched an rival's racket or person during play.
- Possible hindrance at the conclusion of a rally.
Importantly, there is no cap on the number of challenges a player can request.
Practical Application
An illustrative example took place in a recent tournament recently, where Daniil Medvedev initiated the review system against his opponent.
Draper admitted it was a difficult call for the official, but believed his opponent had "used the regulations effectively."
The umpire watched a video and ruled the player was guilty of interference, awarding the rally to Medvedev.
Wider Implementation
Video reviews aren't exclusive to major tournaments. It has been in use at the American major since 2023 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 will have video reviews implemented at all of its tournaments.
Other Changes
A further innovation at Wimbledon this year involves the addition of graphical cues on scoreboards to support the verbal announcements from the ELC system.
This solves situations where the crowd have sometimes been unsure whether a ball was in or out.
Finally, with exactly a century of days remaining until the beginning of the tournament, organizers have also revealed an increase in daily capacity at the qualifiers in Roehampton.
