Coco Gauff, 20, wants to see an overhaul of the video replay system in tennis. Following a controversial loss to Polish star Iga Świątek, 6-2, 6-4, Gauff voiced her displeasure with the absence of video replay technology at the French Open.
Gauff was frustrated in the second set after chair umpire Aurelie Tourte reversed his call after originally favoring the American. The disagreement arose on the court after Tourte ruled a Swiatek serve was “Out”.
However, he immediately corrected himself and said that the shot was “In” rather than “Out” as Gauff was swinging to return the serve.
Gauff Frustrated Over Line Calls at French Open and Olympics
“I have the right to finish my swing,” Gauff shouted. “It did not affect the shot,” Tourte countered.
“It’s a Grand Slam semifinal. Know the rules of the game,” Gauff proclaimed before the match resumed.
With Gauff leading 2-1 in the second set, it was a crucial turning point in the match. Gauff would proceed to lose in straight sets and disappointingly exit the French Open.
“Every point matters against anybody, but especially against her. I think it was just one of those moments, but I overcame it. I obviously won that game. I usually don’t get too frustrated with decisions like that, but I think it was just a combination of everything going on in the moment”.
While Gauff is typically a non-argumentative player, she had a similar experience recently at the Olympic Games. The American was seen in a heated debate with the chair umpire over a call against Croatia’s Donna Vekic.
Initially, the Croatian’s shot was called “Out” by a line judge, but it was “In”. The line judge immediately reversed course and corrected themselves to give the point to Vekic after Gauff believed it was hers.
Gauff was reduced to tears over the call, which had to feel like déjà vu for the 20-year-old American. Vekic proceeded to oust Gauff in an upset by a score of 7-6, 6-2.
“I feel like I’m getting cheated on constantly in this game,” a visibly upset Gauff said. “It happens to me, it happened to (Serena) Williams.”
Gauff Demands Tennis Utilize Video Replay Technology
Both controversial calls against Gauff happened at Roland Garros in France. In 2021, the US Open used Hawk-Eye technology on all courts for the first time.
According to the managing director of Hawk-Eye North America, James Japhet, only 14 of 225,000 calls were missed by the technology at the 2020 US Open. He added the only reason they were incorrect was because of human errors in the control room.
The 2021 Australian Open was the first major event to be played without line judges and to fully embrace replay technology. However, there were instances where it appeared that the system didn’t rule correctly.
Roland Garros does not use Hawk-Eye technology or any other type of replay system. Several other tournaments on the ATP and WTA Tour solely use the discretion of judges to get the call right. The clay surface at Roland Garros can make it more difficult, as the surface gets smudged from players and tennis balls.
Additionally, clay courts leave a clear mark after the ball lands on the court, so this is used as a determining factor to help judges. Nevertheless, clay courts, notably Roland Garros, haven’t been without their issues. Gauff wants to see a replay system implemented universally for all tournaments and decisions.
She first raised the problem with the absence of a video review system after losing in the French Open.
In situations you can call for the supervisor, but there’s not much they can do from that standpoint. I definitely think as a sport we have to evolve, and we have the technology. They’re showing it on TV, so I don’t get why the player can’t see it.” Gauff continued, “I think tennis is the only sport where not only we don’t have the VR system, but a lot of times the decisions are made by one person.
An emotionally charged Gauff echoed similar thoughts after losing in the Olympic Games to Vekic.
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.
Many major sports worldwide use video review technology to help with calls. Every major North American sport has implemented some form of review system in their sport.
Major League Baseball is slowly embracing the use of “robo-umps” to determine balls and strikes. Currently, teams can challenge calls on players running the bases, but not at-bats, yet. In 2016, VAR was used in soccer for the first time. Today, it is the standard for elite European leagues, and Major League Soccer matches. Will tennis listen to Gauff and introduce a comprehensive video review system?
