The tournament joins the US and Aussie Opens in utilizing replay technology.
Replay technology are set to arrive at The Championships in the upcoming tournament.
Players will gain the option to contest particular rulings from the chair umpire, echoing the practice currently in place at each of the American Grand Slam and the Australian Open.
This innovation is slated for use on the main stadium and Court One for the duration of the tournament and on the other four featured courts when they are staging singles contests.
This move arrives only a season following the AELTC introduced electronic line calling, which terminated the longstanding role of line officials.
Scope of Challenges
Players will not be permitted to dispute the accuracy of the ELC system, but are allowed to ask for the umpire to re-examine specific situations, including:
- Whether a tennis ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a ball made contact with an rival's racket or body on the way past.
- Possible hindrance end of a point.
Notably, there is no limit on the amount of challenges a player can initiate.
Practical Application
An illustrative incident occurred in Indian Wells recently, where Daniil Medvedev initiated the video challenge against Jack Draper.
The British player admitted it was a difficult call for the official, but believed his rival had "used the regulations effectively."
Official Aurelie Tourte watched a replay and determined Draper was guilty of hindrance, awarding the rally to his opponent.
Growing Trend
This technology are not new for Grand Slams. It has been in use at the US Open for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Furthermore, it is increasingly prevalent on the women’s WTA Tour, and by next season the men's ATP Tour plans to have video reviews implemented at all of its tournaments.
Other Changes
A further change at Wimbledon this year involves the introduction of visual indicators on displays to support the verbal announcements from the ELC system.
This solves situations where fans have sometimes been uncertain whether a ball was out or in.
In other news, with exactly a century of days to go until the beginning of the Championships, organizers have also revealed an increase in daily capacity at the qualifying competition in Roehampton.
