Three matches at the recently concluded Wimbledon have come under the Tennis Integrity Unit scanner for alleged match-fixing violations, Washington Post reported on Wednesday.
In addition, the report also noted that TIU is conducting an investigation of a match played at the French Open 2017.
Of the three Wimbledon matches that have come under the TIU’s notice for discrepancies in the betting patterns, two were played in the qualifying rounds, while the third was a main draw match. The TIU was, however, quick to point out that these discrepancies in themselves weren’t indicators that matches had been fixed.
“Every alert is assessed and followed up as an indicator that something inappropriate may have happened,” stated the TIU.
Further elaborating, it added, “It is important to appreciate that an alert on its own is not evidence of match-fixing. There are many reasons other than corrupt activity that can explain unusual betting patterns, such as incorrect odds-setting, well-informed betting, player fitness, fatigue and form, playing conditions and personal circumstances.”
While incidents of match-fixing pertain to the lower tiers of professional tennis, recent allegations about matches being fixed at Wimbledon and Roland Garros aren’t surprising. At the start of 2016, the British Broadcasting Corporation report suggested TIU investigated 16 players ranked in world top-50, including Grand Slam champions in doubles, for tanking matches. All of them were, however, allowed to compete.
According to the TIU website, the Integrity Unit has flagged around 83 matches from January to June this year as compared to 121 matches for the same time-frame in 2016. Out of these, 53 matches were reported between April to June, which also include the aforementioned matches at Wimbledon and at the French Open.