Wimbledon Embraces Video Replay Technology in 2025.
Wimbledon will follow the US and Aussie Opens in employing video review systems.
Replay technology will be launched at Wimbledon this year.
Athletes are granted the ability to challenge particular decisions from the official, mirroring the protocol currently in use at both the American Grand Slam and the Australian Open.
This technology will be accessible on Centre Court and Court One for the duration of the tournament and on the other four featured courts when they are staging singles contests.
This move comes just a season following the All England Club rolled out electronic line calling, which effectively ended the 147-year tradition of line officials.
What Can Be Reviewed?
Competitors cannot to dispute the accuracy of the ELC system, but are allowed to request the umpire to re-examine other decisions, including:
- Whether a tennis ball has bounced twice.
- Whether a shot touched an opponent's racquet or body on the way past.
- Possible interference at the conclusion of a point.
Notably, there will be no cap on the number of challenges a player can initiate.
Practical Application
An illustrative incident occurred in Indian Wells recently, where Daniil Medvedev used the review system against Jack Draper.
Draper conceded it was a tough call for the official, but believed his rival had "played the rules effectively."
Official Aurelie Tourte viewed a video and determined the player was guilty of interference, awarding the point to his opponent.
Growing Trend
This technology aren't new for major tournaments. The system was adopted at the US Open for two years and the Australian Open this year.
Furthermore, it is becoming more common on the women’s WTA Tour, and by the coming year the men's ATP Tour plans to have video reviews implemented at all of its tournaments.
Other Changes
A further innovation at The Championships this year will be the addition of visual indicators on scoreboards to support the verbal announcements from the ELC system.
This solves instances where fans have sometimes been uncertain whether a shot was out or in.
Finally, with exactly a century of days to go until the beginning of the Championships, the AELTC have also revealed an increase in daily capacity at the qualifiers in Roehampton.