Wimbledon will follow the US and Australian Opens in employing replay technology.
Video review technology are set to arrive at The Championships in the upcoming tournament.
Players will gain the ability to contest certain decisions from the official, echoing the protocol currently in operation at each of the US Open and the Australian Open.
The new system will be operational 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 development follows just a year after the All England Club introduced electronic line calling, which effectively ended the longstanding tradition of line judges.
What Can Be Reviewed?
Competitors will not be permitted to challenge the accuracy of the ELC system, but they can request the official to re-examine specific decisions, including:
- If a ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a ball made contact with an rival's racket or person during play.
- Possible interference at the conclusion of a rally.
Notably, there is an unlimited number on the number of reviews a player can initiate.
Practical Application
An illustrative case occurred in Indian Wells recently, where a top player used the video challenge against his opponent.
Draper admitted it was a tough call for the official, but thought his opponent had "used the regulations quite well."
The umpire watched a video and determined the player was guilty of interference, awarding the point to his opponent.
Growing Trend
This technology aren't new for Grand Slams. It was adopted at the American major for two years and the Australian Open since 2025.
Furthermore, it is becoming more common 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 innovation at Wimbledon this year will be the introduction of visual indicators on displays to support the verbal announcements from the electronic line calling system.
This solves instances where the crowd have occasionally been unsure whether a shot was in or out.
Finally, with exactly a century of days remaining until the start of the tournament, the AELTC have further announced an expansion in daily capacity at the qualifiers in the qualifying venue.
