Wimbledon Embraces Video Challenge Technology This Season.
Wimbledon will follow the US and Aussie Opens in employing video review technology.
Replay technology are set to arrive at The Championships this year.
Athletes are granted the right to question particular calls from the chair umpire, mirroring the protocol currently in place at both the American Grand Slam and the Aussie major.
The new system will be accessible on Centre Court and the number one court throughout the tournament and on the remaining featured courts when they are hosting singles matches.
This move arrives only a season following the All England Club introduced electronic line calling, which effectively ended the longstanding tradition of line judges.
What Can Be Reviewed?
Competitors will not be permitted to challenge the call of the ELC system, but they can request the official to review specific decisions, such as:
- Whether a ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a shot touched an rival's racket or body on the way past.
- Potential interference end of a rally.
Notably, there is no cap on the number of challenges a player can initiate.
A Recent Example
A recent case took place in a recent tournament recently, where Daniil Medvedev used the video challenge against his opponent.
The British player admitted it was a tough situation for the official, but thought his rival had "played the rules effectively."
The umpire watched a replay and determined the player was guilty of hindrance, granting the rally to Medvedev.
Broader Adoption
Video reviews aren't new for major tournaments. It was adopted 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 ATP circuit plans to have video reviews implemented at all of its tournaments.
Further Updates
A further innovation at The Championships 2025 will be the addition of visual indicators on scoreboards to support the audio calls from the electronic line calling system.
This addresses situations where fans have sometimes been unsure whether a shot was out or in.
In other news, with exactly a century of days to go until the beginning of the Championships, the AELTC have further revealed an expansion in daily capacity at the qualifying competition in the qualifying venue.
