The 2017 Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan will feature live Electronic Line Calling on all lines on court during the tournament – something the ATP calls “Hawk-eye Live”.
The Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan will be a testing ground for some innovations that the ATP are tinkering with. Here is a breakdown of the rule changes. Would be love to hear your thoughts about the different “innovations” the ATP is trying below.
- Best of five sets, first to four games with a tie-break at three games all.
- No lets, no advantage.
- Shot clock ensuring fast play.
- Hawk-Eye live
What then is hawk-eye live?
It’s basically hawk-eye line calling on all points. When triggered, the system will make an instant automated “OUT” call. By default, given that each call will be final, there will be no challenges, but close calls will be accompanied with visualisation of the “OUT” call on video screens around the stadium. Foot-faults will be determined by a Review Official who will be monitoring via cameras placed on the base and centre lines.
‘This could be a landmark moment for officiating in our sport,’ said Gayle David Bradshaw, Executive Vice President, Rules and Competition, ATP. ‘Our athletes work incredibly hard and they deserve the very best and most accurate officiating we can offer. The technology is now in a place where we feel comfortable trialling this new system in a real tournament environment. The Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan is the perfect place to do this, and we look forward to monitoring the results and assessing the merits of this new system.’
‘The Next Gen ATP Finals provides a fantastic platform to showcase the Hawk-Eye Live technology, which we see as the future of tennis officiating,’ said Sam Green, Director of Tennis, ELC at Hawk-Eye. ‘Working with the ATP has allowed us to refine the system to not only improve the quality of line calling, but the overall fan experience.’
What do you think of the ATP Next Gen Finals setup with rule changes and Hawk-Eye live? Do you think it’s something we will see more of in other tournaments of the tour and how will these changes affect the game?
2 comments
Technology is getting better but I’m not a fan of this, I feel like this is getting the linesmen out of their jobs, I prefer the challenge system because its the players decision to do so and i think that sport is all about making decision.
I agree completely that the human element is important! And the challenge system makes for exciting watching :)