The Hindu : Sport : ‘Threat to the integrity of sport exists’

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Sunday, Oct 14, 2007
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Sport - Sports : General

‘Threat to the integrity of sport exists’

London: Tennis must remain vigilant against the threat of match-fixing and betting scams, even though the sport’s four major organisations said there is no hard evidence of corruption.

The International Tennis Federation, the ATP, the WTA Tour and the Grand Slam Committee met in London to discuss the issue, only three days after 18th-ranked Andy Murray claimed that corruption in the game is common knowledge.

“While we do not believe that our sport has a corruption problem, we do recognise that a threat to the integrity of tennis exists,” the group said in a statement.

Murray , has already backed off his claim in a statement on his website.

Murray’s clarification

“The comments that I made with regard to betting in tennis have been taken out of context and I would like to clarify them,” Murray said.

“When I said ‘everyone knows that it’s going on,’ I meant that everyone has probably heard that three or four players have spoken out about being offered money to lose matches, which they refused.”

Tennis officials have been discussing ways to keep the sport free of match-fixing, and they have called in experts from other sports to help.

“We believe that an independent situation analysis of this risk is necessary and intend to utilise external expertise to assist us in conducting this analysis,” the group said.

Murray’s comments earlier this week led the ATP to ask him to explain himself at a meeting. That is expected to happen on Monday.

Ivan Ljubicic, the president of the ATP Player Council who is playing at the BA-CA Tennis Trophy in Austria, became the third player to question Murray’s remarks. “I think Andy Murray talked more about what he heard than about what he knows,” Ljubicic said on Friday. Match-fixing rumours have swirled around tennis for the last few months. An on-line betting site, in an unprecedented move, voided bets on a match in August because of irregular betting patterns.

Davydenko withdrew from that match in Poland against 87th-ranked Martin Vassallo Arguello in the third set because of a foot injury, and the ATP is looking into it.

Tennis officials have also received a document that lists professional matches considered to be suspicious, including some at Grand Slams, dating to 2002, and Murray’s original comments revived talks about a rule requiring players to tell the ATP within two days any information they may have regarding match-fixing. Since the Davydenko match, others have said they have been approached by outsiders trying to influence a match. Last month, Belgian player Gilles Elseneer said he was offered and turned down more than $100,000 to lose a first-round match against Potito Starace of Italy at Wimbledon in 2005.

Suspicion

On the women’s tour, a match in September drew suspicion for unusual betting patterns.

An on-line betting site briefly delayed payment after 120th-ranked Mariya Koryttseva beat No. 96 Tatiana Poutchek in the quarterfinals of a tournament in India. Eventually, bets were paid, and both the WTA and the betting site said they doubt there was any wrongdoing connected to the match. “I’ve obviously heard about it but haven’t really been following the whole match-fixing thing,” said Serena Williams. — AP

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