Australian Open champion and favourite Novak Djokovic took a swipe at the relationship between betting companies and the sport in a post-match interview on Monday.
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Britain’s leading player Andy Murray wants more “proactive” movement from the authorities.
Roger Federer is one of those top players.
The controversy ignited Monday when the BBC and Buzzfeed News published reports alleging that the sport’s highest authorities had ignored evidence of match-fixing involving 16 players who had been ranked in the top 50 over the past decade.
Despite strong evidence and a comprehensive report, none of those players faced strong repercussions, and more than half are competing in the Australian Open.
One player who didn’t co-operate, Ivo Klec, was given a two-year ban last year. “For obvious reasons with any investigation, you aren’t going to reveal which players are investigated because you get into libel and I think that’s fair enough”.
Murray, who said he had never been approached, was of the view it would have been better if the first the players had heard of the matter had not been through the media.
British bookmaker William Hill has shrugged off criticism of its Australian Open tennis sponsorship deal. after recording an 80 per cent surge in betting turnover on the first day of the 2016 tournament and a almost 300 per cent increase in the controversial live-in-play betting method. The players weren’t identified by name.
Djokovic did confirm, though, that members of his team in the mid-2000s were approached to throw a match in Russian Federation. I think when people come with those sums of money when you’re that age, I think sometimes people can make mistakes. “I would really like to know”. I think you don’t understand.
Former No.1-ranked Caroline Wozniacki lost 1-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4 to Yulia Putintseva, continuing a downward spiral at Melbourne Park that has resulted in her exiting one round earlier each year since she reached the 2011 semifinals.
“It’s a fine line”.
It’s bound to come out, Roddick said in another tweet: “In the age of leaks and social media, I don’t think secrets exist”.
Corrado Barazzutti, Italy’s Fed Cup captain, said preventing match fixing is key.
However, tennis officials have rejected suggestions they have been lax on the issue of match-fixing.
“We also work closely with law enforcement, because the tennis anti-corruption program does mirror criminal offenses basically, but we are not law enforcement”, said Willerton. His path to another title has been made easier by the shock first-round elimination of Rafael Nadal, who crashed in five sets to fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco.
Due to the sheer volume of matches in professional tennis, it’s hard to catch everyone, according to Kermode. “I’m here to start from the very beginning, to start from the scratch, and see where it takes me”. Djokovic said the offer was rejected and that he didn’t even play in the tournament.
For No. 13 Milos Raonic the focus on gambling was an unwanted distraction. And it could be the year that match-fixing pushes world tennis leaders to acknowledge the sport’s shortcomings and make the necessary changes to better it indefinitely.
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Nearly as an afterthought, the rising 24-year-old Romanian who was a finalist at the 2014 French Open added that her biggest goal was “to win a Grand Slam”.
