Novak Djokovic, the 33-year-old tennis player accidentally hit a female line judge’s throat with a loose ball. Now Djokovic thinks the job of line judges should be done by technology. More specifically the hawkeye technology.
The French Open does not use the HawkEye technology in order to determine close calls to its full accuracy. “The technology is so advanced right now, there is absolutely no reason why you should keep line umpires on the court,” says Djokovic when asked in an interview as to what he thinks about hotting the line umpire in the throat. However, Djokovic still continues to insist that there is no use for line umpires anymore.
What Exactly Did Novak Djokovic Say?
“With all my respect for the tradition and the culture we have in this sport, when it comes to people present on the court during a match, including line (judges), I really don’t see a reason why every single tournament in this world, in this technological advanced era, would not have what we had during the Cincinnati/New York tournaments.” – Novak djokovic on hitting the line umpire in the throat
Djokovic beat Columbia’s Daniel Galan to reach the French Open fourth round on Saturday.
Why Was The HawkEye Technology Suggested
Due to the COVID pandemic, the majority of the lawn tennis courts at the US open, apart from the main court shows are dispensed with judges as a COVID health precaution. Now that they’re back on the French Open, and because of the fact that they’re on a clay field, they do not have Hawkeye Technology. This is because the soil leaves a mark of the dust which is the job of the umpire to examine.
https://www.eurosport.com/tennis/novak-djokovic-calls-for-technology-to-replace-line-umpires_vid1362967/video.shtml (Watch Djokovic’s interview here)
While the issue stands that the players should be able to challenge via a hawkeye review, during the French Open as well as the other clay grounds where tennis is played.
“Of course, I understand technology is expensive, so it’s an economic issue and a question mark. But I feel like we are all moving towards that, and sooner or later there is no reason to keep line umpires.”
To the above statement, Djokovic added
“Yes, ball kids, of course, ball person, yes, but line umpires, I don’t see why anymore, to be honest,” he said before adding with a smile “I would also probably then have less chances to do what I did in New York.”
What Is The HawkEye Technology?
This technology is used in sports. This technology is basically a camera system which traces the ball trajectory during the game. Hawk-eye was the first company to receive a FIFA Goal Line Technology (GLT) licence. The technology is now classed as the most accurate, reliable and experienced provider of GLT. Working with many federations and football leagues, there is no doubt that there is faith in the technology from the industry experts.
In Tennis, HawkEye is used since the year 2002. It is called Electronic Line Calling (ELC). The technology is now used in multiple tournaments worldwide, every year. This technology allows the players to track the ball, and request for a HawkEye challenge.
