Wimbledon Introduces Video Replay Technology This Season.
Wimbledon will follow the American and Australian Opens in implementing replay technology.
Replay technology are set to arrive at The Championships for the 2025 edition.
Players are granted the ability to contest specific rulings made by the official, following the protocol currently in use at each of the US Open and the Australian Open.
This innovation will be operational on Centre Court and Court One throughout the tournament and on the remaining featured courts when they are hosting singles contests.
This step comes just a season following the AELTC rolled out ELC, which terminated the 147-year role of line judges.
Scope of Challenges
Players cannot to challenge the call of the ELC system, but they can request the umpire to review other situations, such as:
- Whether a ball has bounced twice.
- If a ball made contact with an opponent's racquet or person on the way past.
- Possible hindrance at the conclusion of a rally.
Notably, there will be no limit on the number of reviews a competitor can initiate.
Case in Point
An illustrative incident occurred in a recent tournament recently, where a top player used the video challenge against his opponent.
The British player conceded it was a difficult call for the official, but believed his opponent had "played the rules quite well."
Official Aurelie Tourte viewed a replay and determined the player was guilty of interference, granting the point to his opponent.
Broader Adoption
Video reviews aren't new for major tournaments. It has been in use at the American major for two years and the Aussie Open since 2025.
Furthermore, it is increasingly prevalent on the WTA circuit, and by next season the ATP circuit will have the system in place at every one of its tournaments.
Additional Innovations
A further innovation at Wimbledon this year will be the introduction of visual indicators on scoreboards to support the audio calls from the ELC system.
This addresses situations where the crowd have occasionally been uncertain whether a ball was out or in.
Finally, with precisely a century of days to go until the start of the Championships, organizers have also announced an increase in daily capacity at the qualifiers in Roehampton.
