The tournament joins the US and Australian Opens in utilizing replay systems.
Replay technology will be launched at Wimbledon in the upcoming tournament.
Athletes are granted the right to challenge certain calls made by the chair umpire, following the system already in operation at both the US Open and the Aussie major.
This technology will be accessible on the main stadium and Court One throughout the Championships and on the remaining show courts when they are staging singles matches.
This move arrives only a season following the AELTC implemented ELC, which terminated the centuries-old tradition of line judges.
Reviewable Decisions
Competitors will not be permitted to dispute the call of the electronic line calling, but are allowed to ask for the umpire to review other decisions, including:
- If a tennis ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a shot made contact with an rival's racket or person on the way past.
- Possible hindrance end of a point.
Importantly, there is no limit on the amount of challenges a competitor can request.
Practical Application
An illustrative example occurred in a recent tournament last week, where Daniil Medvedev initiated the video challenge against his opponent.
Draper admitted it was a difficult call for the umpire, but thought his opponent had "played the rules quite well."
The umpire viewed a video and determined the player was responsible for hindrance, granting the point to his opponent.
Broader Adoption
This technology are not exclusive to major tournaments. The system has been in use at the US Open for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Additionally, it is increasingly prevalent 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 events.
Additional Innovations
Another change at The Championships this year will be the addition of visual indicators on displays to complement the audio calls from the ELC system.
This solves situations where fans have sometimes been unsure whether a ball was out or in.
In other news, with precisely a century of days to go until the beginning of the Championships, the AELTC have also revealed an increase in daily attendance at the qualifiers in Roehampton.
