How does Hawk-Eye work at Wimbledon 2024? How many challenges does each player have?
Wimbledon combines the use of line judges and technology to ensure the correct calls are made on certain courts.
Electronic line calling has become commonplace in the world of tennis, although Wimbledon, as you might expect, has held on to tradition as it also embraces modern technology. As a result, Hawk-Eye, which was introduced in 2007 to assist with the correct calling of decisions, continues to be used in conjunction with, rather than instead of, line judges.
How does Hawk-Eye work? Is it used on every court?
Hawk-Eye uses 10 cameras that capture 60 high-resolution images per second, following every strike and bounce of the ball, not just the ones we see on screen when a player challenges a call.
At Wimbledon, only Centre Court and Courts 1, 2, 3, 12 and 18 have the software in place. On all other courts, line judges are still solely responsible for deciding whether a ball is in or out.
On the courts in question, line judges, and the chair umpire, are still the go-to when it comes to calls. However, players have the opportunity to challenge the initial call made if they feel they have been wronged.
How many challenges to players get in each set?
Ahead of each set, every player is given three challenges, which is indicated on the scoreboard in the corner of said courts at the start of the match. That doesn’t necessarily mean, however, that they can only challenge three decisions.
If a player questions a call correctly, they hold onto the number of challenges they had before their latest challenge. If they got it wrong, on the other hand, then they lose a challenge. In theory, a player could challenge as many time as they wanted, provided they don’t have more than two incorrect challenges.
What if Hawk-Eye had existed in McEnroe’s era?
— BBC 5 Live Sport (@5liveSport) July 13, 2018
A tricky question...and an even better answer 👌 #Wimbledon #bbctennis pic.twitter.com/v1FxrL8ErK
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It should also be noted that if a set goes to a tie-break, both players are given an extra challenge before it begins.
How accurate is Hawk-Eye?
Hawk-Eye is considerably more reliable than Human-Eye, if you will, although that doesn’t mean it never makes mistakes. The software is said to have a 2.2 mm margin of error, which can cause (rare) problems if the ball is travelling especially fast.
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