08-07-2025
Wimbledon's latest tech blunder angers star and forces umpire to make emergency call
Wimbledon's latest tech blunder angers star and forces umpire to make emergency call
Wimbledon's electronic line call system was under the microscope once again as a point during Taylor Fritz's quarter-final had to be replayed due to a "malfunction"
Chair umpire Louise Azemar-Engzell was forced to make the call after the latest error
(Image: 2025 Getty Images )
Wimbledon was once again embroiled in controversy surrounding electronic line calls on Tuesday, when a point during the quarter-final match featuring Taylor Fritz had to be replayed due to a "malfunction" in the technology.
The American star was facing Karen Khachanov on Court 1 when an erroneous "fault" call was made early in the fourth set. As Khachanov shaped up to hit a forehand, the latest ELC fault at Wimbledon saw the system loudly, and incorrectly, announce a fault which forced umpire, Louise Azemar-Engzell to pause play.
Fritz had just missed the centre line at 15-0 with his first serve and was correctly called for a "fault". However, his second serve landed in the service box and led to a three-shot rally before the error.
The umpire promptly made a call to the relevant officials and later informed the spectators that the point would have to be replayed due to a system glitch. The BBC cameras showed Fritz looking visibly frustrated and angry at the system's latest mishap, which has generated controversy amongst players.
To fans' shock, Azemar-Engzell was then forced to make an emergency phone call to reset the system. After the delay, the umpire announced to the crowd: "Ladies and gentlemen, we will replay the last point due to a malfunction. The system is now working."
Fritz went on to secure victory in a tiebreak to reach the semi-finals, where he will face either Carlos Alcaraz or Cameron Norrie.
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Taylor Fritz wasn't happy over the call
(Image: BBC )
The All England Club also issued a statement shortly after, explaining the error: "The player's service motion began while the BBG was still crossing the net and therefore the system didn't recognise the start of the point. As such the Chair Umpire instructed the point be replayed."
The incident has once again put Wimbledon's electronic line calls back under scrutiny, following a significant error over the weekend where the Centre Court system was accidentally switched off, missing three calls during Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova's match against Britain's Sonay Kartal, reports the Mirror.
Following last year's tournament, the decision was taken to replace line judges with technology, a move which has sparked debate and presented several initial challenges for the organisers.
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In response to the error during the Pavlyuchenkova-Kartal match, the All England Club stated that they "continue to have full confidence in the accuracy of the ball-tracking technology".
Wimbledon officials have relayed that adjustments have been made, with an emphatic statement to the BBC: "Following our review, we have now removed the ability for Hawk-Eye operators to manually deactivate the ball tracking. While the source of the issue was human error, this error cannot now be repeated due to the system changes we have made."
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova was dismayed after the electronic line calls in her match with Sonay Kartel
(Image: Clive Brunskill, Getty Images )
Although Fritz did not experience the same complication, the glitches have been questioned, as players and organisers seem to be at odds.
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Tim Henman, a prominent All England Club figure, dismissed doubts about the system's precision expressed by Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper as "utter garbage", asserting the technology is "100 per cent accurate".
Draper previously expressed scepticism last week, stating: "I don't think it's 100% accurate".
Meanwhile, Raducanu questioned the reliability of electronic line calls, saying: "No, I don't – I think the other players would say the same thing, there were some pretty dodgy ones, but what can you do?"
