Wimbledon will follow the American and Australian Opens in utilizing replay systems.
Video review technology are set to arrive at Wimbledon in the upcoming tournament.
Athletes will gain the ability to challenge certain calls made by the chair umpire, mirroring the protocol currently in place at each of the American Grand Slam and the Australian Open.
This innovation is slated for use on Centre Court and Court One for the duration of the Championships and on the other four featured courts when they are staging singles matches.
This development arrives only a season following the AELTC rolled out electronic line calling, which effectively ended the longstanding role of line judges.
Scope of Challenges
Competitors will not be permitted to dispute the call of the electronic line calling, but are allowed to request the umpire to re-examine other situations, such as:
- Whether a ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a shot made contact with an rival's racket or body during play.
- Possible interference end of a rally.
Importantly, there will be an unlimited number on the number of challenges a player can request.
Case in Point
A recent incident took place in a recent tournament last week, where Daniil Medvedev used the video challenge against his opponent.
The British player conceded it was a tough call for the umpire, but believed his rival had "played the rules effectively."
Official Aurelie Tourte viewed a video and ruled Draper was guilty of hindrance, awarding the point to Medvedev.
Wider Implementation
Video reviews are not exclusive to Grand Slams. It was adopted at the American major for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Furthermore, it is becoming more common on the WTA circuit, and by the coming year the ATP circuit plans to have video reviews in place at all of its tournaments.
Additional Innovations
A further innovation at The Championships this year will be the addition of graphical cues on scoreboards to complement the audio calls from the electronic line calling system.
This solves situations where spectators have sometimes been uncertain whether a ball was out or in.
Finally, with precisely 100 days remaining until the start of the tournament, the AELTC have also announced an increase in daily capacity at the qualifiers in Roehampton.
