Line judges dodging serves at breakneck speed and arguing with hot-headed players could soon become a thing of the past.

Wimbledon is considering replacing the on-court officials with artificial intelligence.

Jamie Baker, the tournament director of the championships, said the club was not ruling out the move as it tries to balance preserving its traditions with technological innovation.

In April, the men’s ATP tour announced that line judges would be replaced by an electronic calling system, which uses a combination of cameras and AI technology, from 2025.

Baker said: “Line calling obviously is something that is accelerated in the rest of tennis and we are not making any decisions at this point but we are constantly looking at those things as to what the future might hold.”

The US Open and the Australian Open use cameras to track the ball and determine where the shots land. Wimbledon and the French Open are the only two grand slam tournaments not to have made the switch.

In May, John McEnroe, the seven-time grand slam champion, said line judges should be scrapped at Wimbledon in favour of automated electronic calling. The 64-year-old told the Radio Times: “I think that tennis is one of the few sports where you don’t need umpires or linesmen. If you have this equipment, and it’s accurate, isn’t it nice to know that the correct call’s being made? Had I had it from the very beginning, I would have been more boring, but I would have won more.”

John McEnroe says line judges should be scrapped. Photograph: Stéphane Cardinale/Corbis/Getty Images

McEnroe, who is known for his on-court outbursts, intimidated a line judge following a call that he disagreed with at the 1990 Australian Open. Last year, Australia’s Nick Kyrgios, who is also known for his temper, called a line judge a “snitch who has no fans” after an intervention mid-game.

Baker was asked about the future of the line judges given the technological innovations in recent years, such as the announcement in June that Wimbledon was introducing AI-powered commentary to its coverage this year.

“We are constantly trying to balance the parts of our heritage that are absolutely sacred, absolutely worth protecting, because half a million people come here every year and it’s a big part of their experience and value,” Baker said.

“But there are also other parts of our heritage that don’t actually carry the same value [as] in the past … so we are looking at ways that we can change and innovate.”

Dressed in their distinctive blue Ralph Lauren blazers, the judges are part of Wimbledon’s rich heritage. Baker said it was the club’s traditions that drew crowds in.

“When we start to see people arriving, whether it’s fans, players, coaches, there’s something about the bricks and mortar of this place that doesn’t matter whether you’ve been here once or 15 times that you can physically see the reaction of people. They just kind of shrink a little bit when they come in, they just love it.

“So I’m sure things are going to change over the next 10, 15, 20 years but our challenge as an executive team here is to make sure those changes don’t erode the heritage, because it’s really important to us.”