Wimbledon will follow the American and Australian Opens in implementing video review systems.
Video review technology are set to arrive at Wimbledon this year.
Players are granted the ability to contest particular decisions from the official, following the system already in use at each of the American Grand Slam and the Aussie major.
This innovation will be operational on Centre Court and Court One for the duration of the Championships and on the remaining show courts when they are staging singles contests.
This development follows just a season following the AELTC rolled out ELC, which effectively ended the 147-year tradition of line judges.
What Can Be Reviewed?
Players will not be permitted to challenge the call of the electronic line calling, but they can request the official to review other situations, including:
- Whether a tennis ball has bounced twice.
- Whether a ball touched an rival's racket or person during play.
- Possible hindrance end of a point.
Notably, there is no cap on the amount of challenges a player can initiate.
Practical Application
A recent case took place in Indian Wells last week, where Daniil Medvedev initiated the review system against his opponent.
The British player conceded it was a tough situation for the official, but believed his opponent had "played the rules quite well."
The umpire watched a replay and ruled the player was responsible for hindrance, awarding the rally to Medvedev.
Broader Adoption
This technology aren't exclusive to major tournaments. It has been in use at the US Open 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 men's ATP Tour plans to have video reviews in place at every one of its events.
Additional Innovations
Another change at The Championships this year will be the introduction of graphical cues on scoreboards to support the verbal announcements from the electronic line calling system.
This addresses instances where fans have occasionally been unsure if a shot was out or in.
Finally, with exactly a century of days remaining until the beginning of the Championships, organizers have further revealed an increase in daily capacity at the qualifiers in Roehampton.
