The tournament joins the American and Aussie Opens in implementing video review technology.
Video review systems will be launched at The Championships for the 2025 edition.
Players are granted the ability to contest particular rulings made by the chair umpire, mirroring the protocol currently in use at both the US Open and the Aussie major.
This innovation is slated for use on the main stadium and the number one court for the duration of the tournament and on the remaining show courts when they are staging singles matches.
This move comes just a year after the All England Club rolled out ELC, which terminated the longstanding role of line judges.
Scope of Challenges
Players cannot to challenge the accuracy of the electronic line calling, but are allowed to ask for the official to re-examine other decisions, including:
- If a tennis ball has bounced twice.
- Whether a ball touched an rival's racket or person during play.
- Possible hindrance end of a point.
Importantly, there is no limit on the number of challenges a player can request.
Case in Point
An illustrative incident took place in a recent tournament last week, where a top player initiated the video challenge against his opponent.
The British player conceded it was a tough call for the umpire, but thought his opponent had "played the rules quite well."
The umpire viewed a video and ruled the player was responsible for interference, granting the point to Medvedev.
Wider Implementation
Video reviews are not exclusive to major tournaments. It was adopted at the US Open for two years and the Aussie Open this year.
Additionally, it is increasingly prevalent on the women’s WTA Tour, and by next season the men's ATP Tour plans to have video reviews in place at every one of its events.
Additional Innovations
A further innovation at The Championships this year involves the addition of visual indicators on scoreboards to support the audio calls from the ELC system.
This solves situations where fans have occasionally been uncertain whether a shot was in or out.
Finally, with precisely 100 days to go until the start of the Championships, the AELTC have also announced an expansion in daily attendance at the qualifiers in the qualifying venue.
