Wimbledon will follow the American and Australian Opens in employing replay technology.
Replay systems will make its debut at The Championships for the 2025 edition.
Athletes are granted the right to challenge certain calls from the chair umpire, following the practice already in place at each of the American Grand Slam and the Australian Open.
The new system will be operational on the main stadium and Court One throughout the tournament and on the other four show courts when they are staging singles contests.
This move comes just a season following the AELTC implemented ELC, which effectively ended the centuries-old tradition of line judges.
What Can Be Reviewed?
Players will not be permitted to challenge the accuracy of the ELC system, but they can request the official to re-examine specific decisions, including:
- Whether a ball has bounced twice.
- Whether a ball made contact with an rival's racket or body on the way past.
- Possible hindrance at the conclusion of a rally.
Importantly, there will be an unlimited number on the amount of reviews a competitor can ask for.
Practical Application
An illustrative example occurred in Indian Wells recently, where a top player used the video challenge against his opponent.
Draper admitted it was a difficult call for the official, but thought his opponent had "played the rules effectively."
The umpire viewed a replay and ruled Draper was guilty of interference, granting the point to his opponent.
Growing Trend
Video reviews are not new for Grand Slams. The system was adopted at the American major for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Furthermore, it is becoming more common on the women’s WTA Tour, and by next season the men's ATP Tour plans to have video reviews in place at all of its tournaments.
Other Changes
Another innovation at Wimbledon this year will be the introduction of graphical cues on scoreboards to support the verbal announcements from the ELC system.
This solves situations where spectators have occasionally been uncertain whether a ball was in or out.
Finally, with precisely a century of days remaining until the start of the Championships, the AELTC have also announced an increase in daily capacity at the qualifying competition in Roehampton.
