Wimbledon will follow the US and Aussie Opens in employing replay technology.
Replay technology will be launched at The Championships this year.
Players are granted the right to challenge specific decisions made by the official, mirroring the practice already in use at both the American Grand Slam and the Aussie major.
This innovation will be operational on the main stadium and the number one court throughout the tournament and on the remaining show courts when they are staging singles matches.
This development arrives only a season following the AELTC introduced electronic line calling, which effectively ended the longstanding role of line judges.
Scope of Challenges
Competitors cannot to dispute the call of the electronic line calling, but are allowed to request the umpire to review other situations, such as:
- Whether a ball has bounced twice.
- If a ball touched an opponent's racquet or person during play.
- Possible hindrance end of a point.
Importantly, there is no limit on the amount of challenges a competitor can initiate.
A Recent Example
A recent incident occurred in a recent tournament recently, where Daniil Medvedev used the review system against his opponent.
The British player admitted it was a difficult situation for the official, but thought his opponent had "used the regulations quite well."
The umpire viewed a video and determined the player was responsible for interference, awarding the point to his opponent.
Broader Adoption
Video reviews are not exclusive to major tournaments. It has been in use at the US Open for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Additionally, it is increasingly prevalent on the WTA circuit, and by the coming year the men's ATP Tour plans to have the system implemented at all of its tournaments.
Additional Innovations
A further change at The Championships this year involves the addition of visual indicators on scoreboards to complement the verbal announcements from the electronic line calling system.
This addresses instances where the crowd have occasionally been uncertain whether a ball was in or out.
Finally, with precisely a century of days to go until the beginning of the tournament, organizers have further revealed an increase in daily capacity at the qualifying competition in the qualifying venue.
