Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU), the global anti-corruption body for professional tennis has revealed that between April and June, around 24 matches were reported by operators for questionable betting activities. This has come to light despite the suspension of popular competitions because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Additionally, a match from the 2019 WTA 125K series was saw a retroactive alert. In Q2 of 2019, 33 matches were reported for suspicious betting activities. In comparison, Q2 of 2020 has shown a 27.3% reduction. The TIU added that the continued gambling activities despite major tournaments getting suspended is a red flag that shows how match-fixing is still a grave issue in tennis and global sports.
Additionally, a match from the 2019 WTA 125K series was saw a retroactive alert. In Q2 of 2019, 33 matches were reported for suspicious betting activities. In comparison, Q2 of 2020 has shown a 27.3% reduction. The TIU added that the continued gambling activities despite major tournaments getting suspended is a red flag that shows how match-fixing is still a grave issue in tennis and global sports.
Suspicious betting on tennis during the pandemic-triggered lockdown has been called a ‘firm indicator’ of corruption by the anti-corruption body. The TIU further added that corruptors are likely to resume focus on the sport once the period of suspension is over in August and professional tennis restarts.
In Q2 2020, disciplinary actions were taken against two officials and three players by the TIU. Of them, Youssef Hossam, a 21-year-old Egyptian player has received a ban for a lifetime.
He was found guilty of match fixing (8 cases), aiding in gambling (6 cases), soliciting other players not to use best efforts (2 cases), failing to report corruption (3 cases) and not cooperating with TIU investigation (2 cases). It is interesting that Hossam ranked 291 in the 2017 ATP World Rankings.
Among the other two players to receive suspensions and fines are Tunisian player Majed Kilani and Brazilian player Pertti Vesantera. The two officials who received suspension are French official Anthony Pravettoni and Venezuelan official Armando Alfonso Belardi Gonzalez.
To educate about enhanced threat to integrity during professional tours, the TIU has also launched webinars for players. It has started working closely with the Egyptian Tennis Federation (ETF) to come up with a solid strategy for integrity education for people associated with Egyptian tennis.
It is to be noted that in 2019, the TIU received as many as 138 reports of suspicious activities regarding sport matches. This was the lowest annual record ever since the anti-corruption body’s integrity data went public in 2015.
