By Daisy Graham-brown For The Mail On Sunday
00:11 14 Jul 2024, up to date 00:12 14 Jul 2024
- One line decide says it is potential this 12 months’s version could be final with line judges
Neatly wearing head- to-toe Ralph Lauren, they are a conventional fixture of Wimbledon’s pristine lawns and have sparked a few of the event’s fieriest moments.
However line judges in SW19 fear that immediately could be their closing outing earlier than they are usurped by artificial intelligence.
Alongside with the French Open, Wimbledon is one in every of only two grand slam tournaments yet to adopt AI and judges at the world’s oldest tennis event have voiced their dismay that their days could be numbered.
One, working his fifth 12 months at Wimbledon, advised The Mail on Sunday: ‘It is an actual disgrace nevertheless it does appear probably that they will change it and we can’t be right here any extra. There’s been plenty of speak in the previous few days that this may truly be the final one.’
Famously it was a human line name that sparked the legendary ‘You can not be severe!’ outburst from John McEnroe in 1981.
However despite the fact that the Hawk-Eye system was launched in 2007 to verify choices, many prime gamers stay sad.
Novak Djokovic, who performs reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz in the males’s closing this afternoon, mentioned again in 2020: ‘The know-how is so superior proper now, there may be completely no cause why it’s best to preserve line umpires on the court docket.’
A spokesman from the All England Membership advised the MoS: ‘We’re at all times looking at how technology might further enhance the experience of our players and guests at Wimbledon, but no decisions have been made at this stage.’