OCTOBER 2007

Four players admit being contacted by gamblers in wake of Davydenko loss

The ATP Tour has promised to throw the hammer down on any players, coaches and trainers involved with illegal match fixing, but it appears that the problem is much worse than once thought.

Since Betfair, an Internet gambling website, refused to pay out on Russian Nikolay Davydenko’s strange defeat to Argentina’s Martin Vassalo Arguello in Poland in August, numerous players have said publicly that they have been contacted by gamblers.

Among those who said they were asked to throw a match were Dmitry Tursunov, Paul Goldstein, Michael Llodra and Janko Tipsarevic.

“It happened to a lot of players,” Tursunov told SI. “I don’t know if it’s the same person, but I think everybody gets contacted. And whether you act on it or not, it’s a problem.”

At a U.S. Open press conference that was set up to hype the ATP’s 2009 calendar changes, ATP president Etienne de Villiers stated, “[Gambling] was the elephant in the room. So the elephant has finally come out.”

The ATP is has hired a private firm to investigate the Davydenko-Vassalo match, but both men have denied any wrongdoing.

Davydenko said: “It’s pretty tough for me that somebody is talking about gambling, and already I am in this position, because I’m a top player, and fans and everybody see I am like a bad guy, who is gambling, but I never do this in my life. I never did.

However, this is not the first time that either man has been looked upon with suspicion within the betting industry.

According to the web site onthepunt.com, Davydenko has been allegedly involved in four matchers where there was suspicion of wrongdoing, while Vassalo has been alleged to have been involved with five. Four matches that involved Italian Filippo Volandri were cited, and matches contested by Argentina’s Juan Pablo Guzman and Armenia’s Sargis Sargsian were looked at twice.

The French paper L’Equipe quoted two elite players anonymously who claimed they have witnessed matches being thrown.

“I know several players who have been approached, and who had the exact same experience as me,” said one player who claimed someone offered him $50,000 to lose. “Not for one second did I believe it was a joke. 50,000 dollars is more than what I would have got for getting to the semi in this tournament, and it was tax-free cash. I refused his offer straight away, but I was left wondering what direction we’re going in.”

Another player said the availability of Internet terminals in the players’ lounges has given rise to coaches gambling. “If you look on the Internet terminals in the players’ lounges, you will see that the gambling sites are very popular. I think that about 60-80 percent of coaches are betting,” he said. “I personally know a lot of guys who are internet betting.... I’ve seen matches being thrown, and not just in the smaller tournaments. I’ve seen one in the Masters, for example. But it’s difficult to say whether it’s linked to Internet betting.”

De Villiers said that the ATP board will push for a rule saying that players must report even the smallest sign of gambling or face penalties.

“We recognized a long time ago that online gambling was a threat to the integrity, not just of tennis, but of all sport, and we have put in stringent procedures,” he said. “We take this ridiculously importantly and seriously. We’re not complacent. We never stopped pursuing every potential and possible avenue to preserve the integrity of our sport. We have programs. They are rigorous. We have severe penalties. We can fine a player up to $100,000 for transgressing the code and a maximum lifetime ban. And, trust me, if we find anyone, be it a player, entourage, anyone, they will have the maximum ban imposed. There’s going to be zero tolerance.”

 

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