SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Concerns have been raised over the integrity of a women’s doubles match during the ongoing French Open, after a number of bookmakers reported suspicious betting activity on the game.
According to Germany’s WELT newspaper, a police investigation is ongoing following an influx of bets worth hundreds of thousands of euros were placed during the first round match between Andreea Mitu and Patricia Maria Tig (Romania) against Madison Brengle (USA) and Yana Sizikova (Russia).
It’s been reported that police are currently looking into whether the fifth game in the second set has been manipulated, and whether one of the players was involved.
Footage from the fifth game shows Sizikova serving two double faults before slipping and failing to make a return. Reports have suggested that bets were placed with multiple operators for Sizikova’s serve to be broken in the fifth game of the second set.
Last week, the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) handed a four-year ban and $15,000 fine to Spanish tennis player Gerard Joseph Platero Rodriguez after he was convicted of courtsiding.
The player has become the first to be charged with the offence, which involves the transmission of live scoring data from a match to a third party for betting purposes.
