Novak Djokovic, the Olympic champion and 24-time Grand Slam winner, has criticized the absence of video technology in tennis, calling it “embarrassing.” His comments came after a controversial point in the Cincinnati Masters, where Jack Draper defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime despite suspicions that the ball hit Draper’s racquet and the floor before it went over the net. While the Canadian protested, the chair umpire ruled the point legitimate, and Draper was declared the winner.
Djokovic, who is not competing in the tournament, took to social media to express his frustration. “It’s embarrassing that we don’t have video replay of these kind of situations on the court,” he wrote. “What’s even more ridiculous is that we don’t have the rule in place that would allow chair umpires to change the original call based on the video review that happens off the court!” He added, “Everyone who watches TV sees what happened on the replay, yet the players on the court are kept in the ‘dark’ not knowing what’s the outcome.”
Djokovic pointed out the irony of using Hawkeye for line calls while lacking video replay for other critical situations. “We have Hawkeye for line calls, we live in the technologically advanced 21st century! Please respective Tours, make sure this nonsense never happens again!”
Djokovic is not alone in his call for video replays. American star Coco Gauff, the US Open champion and World No. 2, also demanded the introduction of video replays after a controversial call during her loss at the Paris Olympics. During her match against Donna Vekic, Gauff became embroiled in a heated dispute with the chair umpire over a line call. “I’m getting cheated in this game. You guys are not fair to me,” Gauff told the chair umpire. “I feel like in tennis, we should have a VR (video review) system because these points are big deals. And, yeah, usually afterwards, they apologize, so it’s kind of frustrating when the sorry doesn’t help you once the match is over,” she said.
While the US Open, the last Grand Slam event of the season, employs video replay, it is largely absent from other tour events. The calls from Djokovic and Gauff highlight a growing frustration among top players regarding the lack of video replay technology in the sport, particularly in crucial situations that can determine the outcome of a match. Their strong statements could force tennis governing bodies to consider implementing a more comprehensive and technologically advanced system to ensure fairness and minimize controversies.
