What was supposed to be a thrilling fourth-round clash at Wimbledon on Sunday turned into a heated controversy when a technology glitch took center stage.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova may have beaten Britain’s Sonay Kartal in straight sets (7-6, 6-4), but it’s the match’s officiating drama that’s still making headlines.
The Moment Everything Went Wrong
At 4-4 in the first set, Pavlyuchenkova had the upper hand, serving with advantage.
That’s when things went off the rails.
Kartal hit a ball that looked clearly out — but no automated “out” call came.
The Hawk-Eye electronic line-calling (ELC) system was silent.
Chair umpire Nico Helwerth paused the game just before a robotic voice announced, “Stop! Stop!” What followed was four minutes of confusion as Helwerth made a courtside call and eventually ruled the point should be replayed, admitting the system hadn’t tracked the ball.
Accusations of Bias Spark Fury
Pavlyuchenkova, visibly rattled, managed to stay composed enough to win the match.
But afterward, she didn’t hold back.
The Russian claimed the officials “stole” a game from her and hinted that favoritism toward her British opponent may have played a role.
“I don’t know if it’s in or out,” she said post-match.
“But because she’s local, they can say whatever.
You took the game away from me.”
She even alleged that Helwerth later told her he believed the ball was out but was too hesitant to make the call.
Wimbledon’s Embarrassing Admission
Not long after, the All England Club issued an apology and confirmed what many feared — the ELC system was accidentally deactivated.
Apparently, someone operating the system had turned it off on Kartal’s side of the court for one game.
A spokesperson acknowledged that three calls were missed, two of which were called manually by the umpire — who, crucially, had no idea the system wasn’t working.
After the third miss, the umpire paused the match and followed protocol to replay the point.
No Umpire for ‘Magic Monday’
Interestingly, umpire Nico Helwerth was nowhere to be seen on Monday — a huge day in the Wimbledon calendar known as “Magic Monday,” when all remaining singles players take the court.
Tournament organizers insist his absence was simply a scheduled rest day after officiating nine matches in the past week.
Still, the timing raised eyebrows, especially given the fallout from Sunday’s tech mess.
Pavlyuchenkova Calls for Change
While she advanced to the quarterfinals, Pavlyuchenkova made it clear she hopes tournament officials learn from the incident.
She called the handling of the situation “confused” and said umpires need a clearer backup plan when technology fails.
“They didn’t know what to do,” she said.
“They should be prepared to take charge if the system is down.
We probably need something like football’s VAR.”
Players Divided on Ditching Line Judges
This year’s Wimbledon made a big change by fully replacing line judges with the automated Hawk-Eye system — a move meant to improve accuracy.
But not everyone is convinced.
British stars like Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper have both expressed concerns.
Raducanu even questioned the system’s reliability during her recent match against Aryna Sabalenka.
Wimbledon Stands By Its Tech… For Now
Despite the backlash, Wimbledon officials remain confident in the system.
Chair Debbie Jevans defended the switch to automation, saying it was made at the players’ request and represents progress.
“Funny, isn’t it?” she said. “Players used to ask us why we hadn’t gone digital like the rest of the tour.
Now that we have, some are questioning it again.”
Still, after this high-profile hiccup, it’s clear the technology and those operating it will be under even more scrutiny moving forward.