Wimbledon Embraces Video Replay Technology This Season.
The tournament joins the American and Australian Opens in implementing video review systems.
Video review systems are set to arrive at Wimbledon this year.
Players are granted the option to question certain calls from the chair umpire, following the system currently in use at both the American Grand Slam and the Aussie major.
This innovation is slated for use on Centre Court and Court One for the duration of the Championships and on the remaining featured courts when they are hosting singles matches.
This development follows just a year after the AELTC introduced electronic line calling, which brought an end to the centuries-old tradition of line officials.
Scope of Challenges
Competitors cannot to challenge the call of the electronic line calling, but they can ask for the official to re-examine other situations, including:
- If a tennis ball has double-bounced.
- If a ball made contact with an opponent's racquet or person on the way past.
- Potential interference end of a point.
Notably, there is an unlimited number on the number of reviews a player can request.
Practical Application
An illustrative case took place in a recent tournament recently, where a top player initiated the video challenge against his opponent.
Draper admitted it was a tough call for the official, but believed his opponent had "played the rules effectively."
The umpire watched a video and determined Draper was guilty of interference, awarding the point to his opponent.
Growing Trend
This technology aren't new for Grand Slams. The system was adopted at the US Open for two years and the Australian Open since 2025.
Additionally, it is increasingly prevalent on the women’s WTA Tour, and by next season the ATP circuit will have video reviews implemented at every one of its tournaments.
Further Updates
Another innovation at Wimbledon this year involves the addition of visual indicators on scoreboards to support the audio calls from the electronic line calling system.
This solves situations where fans have sometimes been unsure if a shot was in or out.
In other news, with exactly 100 days to go until the start of the Championships, organizers have also announced an expansion in daily capacity at the qualifiers in Roehampton.
