The automated shot-clock is the way ahead for tennis, insists Tim Henman.
That system, with the watch triggered by a timer as opposed to umpire, has been in operation at Queen’s – and left Spanish ace Carlos Alcaraz claiming he felt ‘rushed’ and it was ‘bad for players’.
As it is only being trialled by the ATP Tour at the moment, it will not be in use at Wimbledon. Ex-British No 1 Henman, though, would welcome its permanent introduction, convinced it will enhance the spectacle and shorten matches, considerably.
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The BBC and Sky Sports commentator said: “People talk about changing the game. One area I don’t agree with is the shot-clock.
“Potentially, it’s a very good addition. However, the way it’s being implemented, in my opinion, is wrong. The only watch you have is controlled by the umpire.
“The rules in tennis are ’25 seconds between points’. But look at when they start the 25 seconds. Invariably, it’s after the crowd has stopped applauding and they’ve called the score.
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“If ten seconds is being wasted a point, a game is won to 30, that’s six points…and a minute every game of dead time. You have a 6-4 set, that’s ten minutes. A five-set match, that’s 50 minutes! I feel strongly, as a sport, we could do much better.”
At the recent French Open, Novak Djokovic was on still on court at 3am in a marathon 3rd-round victory. The Serb later withdrew from Roland Garros with a knee injury that makes a Wimbledon doubt.
Six-time Slam semi-finalist Henman went on: “The shot clock starting automatically will be hard on players. I’m not oblivious to how demanding the long rallies are.
“But we have matches finishing at one, two, three in the morning. It’s definitely an area that needs looking at. “