Wimbledon will follow the American and Australian Opens in utilizing replay systems.
Replay systems are set to arrive at The Championships this year.
Athletes will gain the ability to challenge particular rulings made by the official, echoing the practice already in place at each of the American Grand Slam and the Australian Open.
The new system will be accessible on the main stadium and the number one court for the duration of the Championships and on the other four featured courts when they are staging singles matches.
This move follows just a season following the All England Club rolled out ELC, which brought an end to the 147-year tradition of line judges.
Scope of Challenges
Players will not be permitted to dispute the accuracy of the ELC system, but they can ask for the umpire to review other decisions, such as:
- If a tennis ball has bounced twice.
- If a ball touched an opponent's racquet or body on the way past.
- Potential interference end of a rally.
Importantly, there is an unlimited number on the amount of reviews a player can ask for.
A Recent Example
A recent incident took place in a recent tournament recently, where a top player initiated the video challenge against his opponent.
Draper conceded it was a tough call for the umpire, but believed his rival had "used the regulations quite well."
Official Aurelie Tourte viewed a replay and determined Draper was responsible for interference, granting the rally to his opponent.
Growing Trend
Video reviews aren't exclusive to major tournaments. 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 the coming year the men's ATP Tour plans to have the system implemented at all of its events.
Additional Innovations
A further change at The Championships 2025 will be the addition of visual indicators on displays to support the audio calls from the ELC system.
This solves situations where the crowd have occasionally been unsure if a ball was out or in.
In other news, with exactly a century of days to go until the start of the tournament, the AELTC have further revealed an expansion in daily capacity at the qualifiers in the qualifying venue.
