London . Wimbledon will replace line judges with electronic line calling technology from 2025, the All England Lawn Tennis Club announced on Wednesday. Following the announcement, line judge Wendy Smith, who has been umpiring the tournament since 1982, was extremely saddened and claimed that she did not get a chance to say goodbye to the Mecca of tennis.
Wendy told The Guardian, “It's sad to think that I'll never have a moment like this again. I won't be able to stand on center court. And I wish they would have told us before this year's tournament so that we could say goodbye.” I will always love tennis, but I don't think I will be able to go to Wimbledon as a spectator.
The official technology known as 'Live Electronic Line Calling' (Live ELC) will be implemented on all Championship and qualifying match courts and will include the 'out' and 'fault' calls previously made by line judges.
Wendy added that she was 'shocked' to hear the shocking changes in the news.
“There's a lot a human line judge can do that a computer can't. We definitely maintain the traditions of tennis – I think we keep the courts wellgroomed. And the spectators are very passionate about the game.” Some may learn when they see the discussion between the line judge and the chair umpire.
She said, “So when I heard on Wednesday that the tournament was being replaced by electronic line calling in place of us line judges, I was shocked. It was even more saddening because I found out when it was announced on the news and People started calling me asking how I was feeling.”
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Image Credit: KhasKhabar.