Wimbledon will follow the American and Australian Opens in utilizing replay systems.
Replay systems are set to arrive at Wimbledon in the upcoming tournament.
Athletes are granted the right to question particular decisions from the chair umpire, mirroring the practice currently in operation at both the US Open and the Aussie major.
This technology will be accessible on the main stadium and the number one court throughout the tournament and on the other four featured courts when they are hosting singles contests.
This move comes just a season following the All England Club introduced ELC, which brought an end to the longstanding tradition of line officials.
Reviewable Decisions
Competitors cannot to dispute the accuracy of the ELC system, but are allowed to request the umpire to review other decisions, including:
- Whether a tennis ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a ball touched an rival's racket or person during play.
- Possible interference at the conclusion of a point.
Importantly, there is no limit on the number of challenges a player can ask for.
A Recent Example
An illustrative example occurred in Indian Wells last week, where a top player used the video challenge against his opponent.
Draper admitted it was a difficult situation for the official, but thought his rival had "played the rules effectively."
Official Aurelie Tourte viewed a video and ruled Draper was guilty of interference, awarding the rally to his opponent.
Growing Trend
Video reviews aren't new for Grand Slams. It has been in use at the American major for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Additionally, it is increasingly prevalent on the WTA circuit, 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 2025 will be the introduction of graphical cues on scoreboards to complement the audio calls from the ELC system.
This solves situations where the crowd have occasionally been unsure if a shot was out or in.
In other news, with exactly 100 days to go until the beginning of the Championships, organizers have also revealed an expansion in daily capacity at the qualifying competition in Roehampton.
