World No. 50 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova commented on a referee`s error during her Wimbledon fourth-round match against Sonay Kartal.
The electronic line-calling system malfunctioned at a score of 4-4, Ad-in, when a shot by the Brit landed clearly out. The chair umpire ordered a replay of the point. As a result, the Russian player lost the game, and Kartal served for the set.
Ultimately, Pavlyuchenkova won the match 7-6(3), 6-4.
What did you talk about with the chair umpire after the match? Did he want to explain something to you?
I can`t say for sure. I think he felt a bit awkward. Maybe he decided he should have taken the initiative and called the ball out himself. Because he told me he saw it was out. But I won the match, so I didn`t want to delve into that topic and spoil everyone`s mood. I wanted to enjoy the moment – I won, I reached the quarterfinals. Everything is fine now.
Some players believe that umpires have `degraded` because they have very little to do now. Did this influence today`s situation where the umpire didn`t overrule the call despite the ball being clearly out?
I think it wasn`t easy for him either. Maybe he was afraid to take responsibility. But I believe that`s what they are in the chair for. Why do we have a main umpire if not for this? Otherwise, we could just do without them entirely and automate everything. We`re losing the charm of live presence – for example, the ball kids, who weren`t there during COVID. Everything is becoming too robotic. Although, they issue penalties and warnings flawlessly – they react immediately to any reason. I`d prefer if they paid closer attention to the lines and errors, and not just that.
Previously, there were 7-8 more people on court when there were line judges. Would you like to bring that back to feel more human presence on the court again?
Yes, but you could ask Alona Ostapenko, she is a strong opponent of electronic line-calling. At first, it was funny, but then I started to understand her a little. Sometimes when we play, I think: am I crazy or was the ball out? But nothing happens, the system doesn`t react.
After that, I`ve thought about Alona many times, maybe she`s right. I saw a couple of matches in Miami – something happened there because the ball was literally in the alley. And the system didn`t call it out.
The chair umpire was confused again. It seems to me they just need to have a clear protocol for such situations. I think they get a bit lost. They start calling everyone. They don`t know what to do instead of making a specific decision – for example, if the system isn`t working, they take the initiative and call it themselves. Perhaps we should have a replay system, like in football,” Pavlyuchenkova said at the press conference.
Marcus Prine