Sonay Kartal was as disappointed as the fans were on Sunday as the British player was eliminated by Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the round of 16 at Wimbledon 7-6 6-4. It was a compelling match, and well fought, as Kartal came close to becoming the new British number #1 but will have to settle for a strong run into the second week.
The experienced Pavlyuchenkova has reached a second Wimbledon quarterfinal, 9 years after her first in 2016, showing her longevity and ball striking quality at 34 years old. The match itself was overshadowed by the failure of Wimbledon’s new automated line call system during the first set. At 4-4 and serving, Pavlyuchenkova should have secured the game as Kartal’s shot was out, however, the line calling system failed to activate, play continued, and after much debate, and frustration, Kartal ended up winning the game for a 5-4 lead. Pavlyuchenkova, and the crowd in the stadium and on tv saw the ball was clearly out, but rather than being awarded the point, the umpire stated it needed to be replayed, a result that ultimately benefited the home British player Kartal.
Wimbledon officials called the failure a “system error”, which is effectively the worst nightmare in the first edition of the tournament where electronic line calling is being used (rather than just for reviews of close calls). The system has been under debate during these weeks in London, though errors are to be expected, the hit and miss nature of the system in such sensitive and high profile matches is a significant concern, and the challenges from Wimbledon may result in other tournaments delaying the rollout of the technology.
Tennis isn’t the only sport where automation vs human guided calls is in question, Major League Baseball is considering moving to robotic umpires, something the minor league system has already done, and of course football has seen much debate over the VAR system for goal scoring, fouls, and offsides calls.
After the visible errors in the Pavlyuchenkova vs Kartal match, and with the most important stage of the tournament still be played, the eyes of tennis world will be on Wimbledon’s machines, as we wait to see if the new approach will be a success or a failure. For what it’s worth, the Hawk Eye review system has largely been considered a success since it was adopted, despite early growing pains, and tennis officials hope that automated line calling will lead to similar outcomes.
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
