Novak Djokovic in disagreement with French Open chiefs over controversial decision

Novak Djokovic appears at odds with organisers over their decision to forego Hawk-Eye technology in favour of human line judges. The 24-time Grand Slam champion, who is one major win away from breaking the all-time record he shares with Margaret Court, says he's "a proponent of technology" and thinks its introduction has been a net positive for .

The French Open remains the only Grand Slam to resist adopting Hawk-Eye's electronic line-calling system, which uses high-speed cameras to track ball trajectories with pinpoint precision. Instead, Roland Garros relies on umpires and line judges, a tradition organisers defend as part of the tournament's unique charm. However, latest comments suggests he believes this to be an outdated approach, one that could potentially undermines the integrity of high-stakes matches.

"You don't want to give everything away to the technology, right? But if I have to choose between the two, I'm more of a proponent of technology," the 38-year-old told reporters ahead of his first round clash against Michael McDonald. "It's just more accurate, saves time, and... [means] less people on the court."

This controversy follows uproar involving Alexander Zverev, who to get off his chair to assess a mark that the automated system had called in during his Madrid Open clash with Alejandro Davidovich Fokina last month. The German star even whipped out his phone and took a photo to show the umpire when he refused to check it.

"Look at this mark. Please just come down, look at it," Zverev pleaded. "Don't overrule it, please. Just come down, please. Just for me."

The Australian Open got rid of all line judges in favour of an automated system back in 2021, while at the latest edition of the , line judges were only placed on the two biggest courts. Even Wimbledon - which prides itself on tradition and history - is in favour of a Hawk-Eye system this year.

The French Open, however, remains a holdout, and isn't likely to shift its stance anytime soon. "Unless the players are unanimous and come to us and say, 'We won't play if there isn't a machine'... then I think we've got a great future ahead of us to maintain this style of refereeing," French federation president Gilles Moretton said, while boasting of the quality of his country's officials.

Djokovic isn't the only top player in favour of technology being used in Paris. 2023 US Open winner Coco Gauff urged organisers to adopt an automated system sooner rather than later, claiming that technology progress is inevitable. "I mean, I don't know if it's like the 'Gen Z' in me, but I think if we have the technology, we should use it," the American said.

Three-time major champion Aryna Sabalenka agreed, noting: "Linespeople mess up sometimes. Automatic line-calling is going to mess up probably less."

That said, there are some who don't seem to mind the lack of tech. Stefanos Tsitsipas suggested clay surfaces don't necessarily need automated systems since each bounce of the ball leaves a mark on the court that can be reviewed if necessary.

"That's what makes clay special, in a way - that you can always review the shots," he said. "Obviously, you can't deny that electronic line-calling is the future, and everything is moving towards AI and artificial intelligence. But me, personally, I wouldn't mind playing on clay with maybe the judgment of a human instead of a robot."