The tournament joins the American and Aussie Opens in implementing replay systems.
Video review technology will make its debut at The Championships in the upcoming tournament.
Competitors are granted the ability to contest certain rulings from the chair umpire, following the protocol already in place at each of the US Open and the Australian Open.
This technology will be accessible on Centre Court and Court One throughout the Championships and on the other four show courts when they are staging singles matches.
This step comes just a season following the AELTC implemented ELC, which brought an end to the longstanding tradition of line judges.
Scope of Challenges
Players will not be permitted to dispute the accuracy of the ELC system, but they can request the official to re-examine specific situations, such as:
- Whether a ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a ball made contact with an opponent's racquet or body on the way past.
- Potential hindrance end of a point.
Notably, there will be no cap on the number of challenges a competitor can ask for.
Case in Point
An illustrative example took place in Indian Wells recently, where Daniil Medvedev initiated the video challenge against his opponent.
Draper conceded it was a difficult situation for the umpire, but thought his opponent had "played the rules effectively."
Official Aurelie Tourte watched a replay and determined Draper was guilty of interference, awarding the point to Medvedev.
Wider Implementation
Video reviews aren't new for major tournaments. The system was adopted at the US Open for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Furthermore, it is becoming more common on the WTA circuit, and by next season the ATP circuit plans to have video reviews in place at every one of its tournaments.
Other Changes
Another change at The Championships this year will be the addition of graphical cues on scoreboards to complement the audio calls from the electronic line calling system.
This solves situations where spectators have sometimes been uncertain if a shot was out or in.
Finally, with precisely a century of days to go until the beginning of the Championships, organizers have also announced an increase in daily attendance at the qualifiers in Roehampton.
