There's the Spot
The Hawk-Eye electronic line-calling system which has become a fixture on the stadium courts at most top-tier tournaments on the ATP and Sony Ericsson WTA Tours, as well as having been used at the 2006 U.S. Open and 2007 Australian Open, was absent from the 2007 French Open and the clay court warm-up tournaments. Tennis fans following Roland Garros this year saw the chair umpires frequently jump down from
their “high-chairs” and run over to check the mark in the clay on a disputed call. If you were watching the match on TV, then you may have seen an instant reply using Hawk-Eye technology, but the players on the court and tennis fans in Court Philippe Chatrier had to rely on the judgment of the chair umpire. Fortunately, they seemed to make the “correct calls” the majority of the time. That mark in the dust clearly left a lasting impression! There may not be any marks on the green grass at Wimbledon, but not to worry because the Hawk-Eye system will be in place for the 2007 Championships.
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