Wimbledon will follow the American and Australian Opens in employing replay technology.
Replay technology will make its debut at The Championships for the 2025 edition.
Players are granted the option to challenge particular calls made by the chair umpire, echoing the system already in place at each of the US Open and the Australian Open.
This innovation will be operational on the main stadium and the number one court throughout the Championships and on the other four show courts when they are staging singles matches.
This step follows just a year after the AELTC implemented electronic line calling, which effectively ended the centuries-old role of line judges.
Scope of Challenges
Competitors will not be permitted to challenge the accuracy of the ELC system, but they can ask for the umpire to review other situations, such as:
- If a ball has bounced twice.
- If a shot touched an rival's racket or body on the way past.
- Potential hindrance end of a rally.
Importantly, there is no limit on the number of challenges a competitor can request.
Practical Application
An illustrative example took place in Indian Wells recently, where Daniil Medvedev initiated the review system against his opponent.
Draper admitted it was a tough call for the official, but thought his rival had "played the rules effectively."
Official Aurelie Tourte watched a replay and determined Draper was guilty of hindrance, granting the rally to Medvedev.
Growing Trend
Video reviews are not new for Grand Slams. The system was adopted at the US Open for two years and the Australian Open this year.
Additionally, it is increasingly prevalent on the WTA circuit, and by the coming year the men's ATP Tour will have video reviews in place at all of its tournaments.
Other Changes
A further change at The Championships 2025 will be the addition of graphical cues on scoreboards to support the audio calls from the ELC system.
This addresses instances where spectators have sometimes been uncertain if a ball was in or out.
In other news, with precisely a century of days remaining until the beginning of the tournament, the AELTC have also announced an increase in daily capacity at the qualifiers in the qualifying venue.
