It will soon be the end of an era at Wimbledon. From 2025, the All England Club has announced that the services of line judges, who ringed the court and were responsible for crying ‘out’ and ‘fault’ on serves, will be dispensed with. From then on, all line calls will be decided entirely by the Hawkeye electronic line calling system (ELC). The move comes in the wake of the Association of Tennis Professionals’ (ATP’s) decision to adopt ELC across the men’s tour from 2025, and is thus perfectly logical. But it is not without controversy, and it will not please everybody.

There is something slightly sinister about this takeover by Hawkeye

Wimbledon’s chief executive, Sally Bolton, said that the plan was made after a ‘significant period of consideration and consultation’ and stressed that the technology was ‘robust’. She insisted that it is the right time for a move that will align Wimbledon with ‘a number of other events on the tour’. The technology is already in use at the US and Australian Opens, and with Wimbledon signing on, that just leaves the French Open to complete the Grand Slam.

It is a bit sad, though. The line judges, who always to me suggested,........

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