Wimbledon will follow the US and Australian Opens in implementing replay technology.
Video review technology are set to arrive at The Championships this year.
Athletes will gain the right to question specific calls made by the chair umpire, following the practice currently in operation at each of the American Grand Slam and the Aussie major.
This innovation will be accessible on the main stadium and Court One throughout the tournament and on the remaining featured courts when they are hosting singles contests.
This step comes just a season following the All England Club rolled out ELC, which terminated the centuries-old role of line officials.
Scope of Challenges
Competitors will not be permitted to dispute the call of the electronic line calling, but they can ask for the umpire to re-examine other situations, including:
- Whether a ball has bounced twice.
- Whether a ball touched an rival's racket or person on the way past.
- Potential interference end of a rally.
Notably, there is no limit on the amount of reviews a player can ask for.
Case in Point
A recent case took place in Indian Wells recently, where Daniil Medvedev initiated the video challenge against his opponent.
Draper conceded it was a difficult situation for the official, but thought his opponent had "played the rules quite well."
The umpire watched a replay and ruled Draper was responsible for interference, granting the point to Medvedev.
Wider Implementation
This technology aren't new for Grand Slams. It was adopted at the American major since 2023 and the Australian Open this year.
Additionally, it is increasingly prevalent on the WTA circuit, and by next season the ATP circuit plans to have video reviews implemented at every one of its tournaments.
Other Changes
A further innovation at Wimbledon this year involves the introduction of graphical cues on scoreboards to complement the verbal announcements from the ELC system.
This addresses situations where fans have sometimes been unsure if a ball was in or out.
In other news, with exactly a century of days remaining until the start of the Championships, the AELTC have also announced an increase in daily capacity at the qualifying competition in the qualifying venue.
