Wimbledon will follow the US and Australian Opens in implementing video review technology.
Video review systems are set to arrive at Wimbledon in the upcoming tournament.
Competitors will gain the right to contest specific rulings from the chair umpire, echoing the system currently in use at each of the US Open and the Aussie major.
This innovation will be accessible on the main stadium and Court One for the duration of the Championships and on the remaining show courts when they are staging singles matches.
This move arrives only a year after the All England Club rolled out ELC, which terminated the centuries-old tradition of line judges.
Reviewable Decisions
Competitors cannot to challenge the call of the ELC system, but they can request the umpire to review other situations, including:
- Whether a ball has double-bounced.
- Whether a ball made contact with an rival's racket or body on the way past.
- Potential interference at the conclusion of a point.
Notably, there will be an unlimited number on the amount of reviews a player can initiate.
A Recent Example
An illustrative incident occurred in Indian Wells recently, where a top player initiated the video challenge against Jack Draper.
Draper admitted it was a tough call for the umpire, but believed his opponent had "played the rules quite well."
Official Aurelie Tourte watched a video and ruled Draper was responsible for hindrance, granting the point to his opponent.
Wider Implementation
Video reviews are not exclusive to Grand Slams. The system was adopted at the American major for two years and the Australian Open since 2025.
Additionally, it is becoming more common on the women’s WTA Tour, and by the coming year the men's ATP Tour plans to have the system implemented at every one of its events.
Further Updates
A further change at Wimbledon this year will be the addition of visual indicators on displays to complement the audio calls from the electronic line calling system.
This addresses situations where the crowd have sometimes been unsure whether a shot was in or out.
In other news, with exactly a century of days to go until the start of the Championships, organizers have further announced an increase in daily capacity at the qualifiers in the qualifying venue.
