Wimbledon will follow the US and Australian Opens in utilizing replay systems.
Video review systems will make its debut at The Championships in the upcoming tournament.
Athletes are granted the ability to challenge particular rulings from the chair umpire, echoing the protocol already in use at both the American Grand Slam and the Aussie major.
This technology will be accessible on the main stadium and Court One for the duration of the tournament and on the remaining featured courts when they are staging singles matches.
This development arrives only a year after the All England Club rolled out ELC, which brought an end to the 147-year tradition of line judges.
Scope of Challenges
Competitors cannot to challenge the call of the electronic line calling, but are allowed to request the official to re-examine other decisions, such as:
- If a tennis ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a ball touched an opponent's racquet or body during play.
- Possible interference end of a point.
Importantly, there will be no limit on the number of reviews a player can request.
A Recent Example
An illustrative example occurred in Indian Wells last week, where a top player initiated the review system against Jack Draper.
The British player conceded it was a difficult call for the umpire, but thought his rival had "played the rules quite well."
Official Aurelie Tourte watched a video and ruled Draper was guilty of hindrance, awarding the rally to Medvedev.
Wider Implementation
This technology aren't exclusive to Grand Slams. The system was adopted at the American major for two years and the Australian 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 implemented at every one of its tournaments.
Additional Innovations
A further innovation at Wimbledon this year will be the addition of graphical cues on displays to complement the verbal announcements from the ELC system.
This addresses situations where the crowd have occasionally been uncertain if a shot was out or in.
Finally, with exactly a century of days remaining until the beginning of the tournament, the AELTC have also revealed an increase in daily capacity at the qualifiers in the qualifying venue.
