LONDON – The All England Club’s decision to replace line judges with artificial intelligence technology at Wimbledon has received mixed reviews from players and fans alike.
This week has marked the first time the tournament has been played without meticulously dressed judges determining whether the ball is in or out.
The 300 line judges have been cut to 80 who are instead assisting chair umpires and interceding should the latest Hawk-Eye Electronic Line Calling (ELC) system, fail.
The system uses AI to analyse footage from up to 18 cameras to track the progress of the ball and decide if it is in or out.
Sally Bolton, the Chief Executive of the All England Club, said the new system was brought in to ensure the calls were accurate and not to cut costs.
“It’s not a money-saving exercise; it’s about evolving the tournament and making sure that we’re providing the most effective possible line calling,” she said.
World number one Jannik Sinner told a press conference after his victory over fellow Italian and close friend Luca Nardi:
“As tennis tries to get better for the umpire it’s very difficult to see, especially when first serves are over 200km per hour, so it’s very difficult to see in a small space if they’re in or out, so for sure the technology helps, especially here on grass.”
However, other players found problems with the technology. On Monday, China’s Yuan Yue complained that the system was too quiet for her to hear its decision.
There were small protests outside the grounds against the technology, while some fans expressed sadness about the absence of line judges – a tradition that goes back to the 1870s – and the drama that often accompanies a player’s challenge.
“Tennis is a physical sport, but it’s also a mental game and at a professional level I think that idea of challenging a call is really part of the game,” Jess from Oxford told Reuters.
“As a spectator when they review the footage and everybody is clapping, and it’s the whole thing that this decision comes out and there’s uproar or whatever.
‘It’s sad that part of the atmosphere is gone, because you can’t challenge the calls now. It’s AI, it’s resolute.”
Ivan from Northern Ireland raised concerns that the technology may have some teething problems.
“It was strange not having a line judge. We watched a game on Court Two and a couple of times a ball from where we were sitting, which was close to the line, was out.
“The player pointed to it and stopped and looked to the umpire, and he just ignored it, and the player accepted it. But I expected to see the replay.
‘There were a couple of other times when it was obviously out and obviously in and the replay came up. So the replays were not consistent.”