The tournament joins the US and Aussie Opens in utilizing replay technology.
Replay technology are set to arrive at Wimbledon this year.
Competitors will gain the right to contest certain calls from the official, echoing the system currently in place at each of the US Open and the Aussie major.
The new system will be operational on the main stadium and Court One throughout the tournament and on the remaining show courts when they are staging singles contests.
This development arrives only a year after the AELTC implemented ELC, which effectively ended the longstanding role of line judges.
Reviewable Decisions
Players cannot to dispute the call of the electronic line calling, but are allowed to ask for the umpire to review specific decisions, including:
- Whether a ball has bounced twice.
- Whether a ball touched an opponent's racquet or person during play.
- Potential hindrance at the conclusion of a point.
Notably, there will be an unlimited number on the amount of reviews a competitor can initiate.
A Recent Example
An illustrative case took place in a recent tournament last week, where a top player used the review system against his opponent.
Draper admitted it was a difficult call for the official, but believed his rival had "played the rules quite well."
The umpire watched a video and determined Draper was guilty of interference, granting the point to his opponent.
Growing Trend
This technology are not exclusive to major tournaments. The system was adopted at the American major for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Additionally, it is becoming more common on the women’s WTA Tour, and by next season the men's ATP Tour will have the system implemented at every one of its tournaments.
Further Updates
Another innovation at The Championships this year involves the introduction of graphical cues on displays to complement the audio calls from the ELC system.
This solves situations where spectators have sometimes been unsure whether a ball was in or out.
Finally, with precisely 100 days to go until the start of the tournament, the AELTC have further announced an expansion in daily capacity at the qualifiers in Roehampton.
