HANKY-PANKY ON COURT FOR RM20,000

BADMINTON players are offered at least RM20,000 by bookies to manipulate the outcome of a match in international tournaments, an investigation by the NSTP team revealed.

LUCRATIVE offers from bookies are seen as the main bait that lures shuttlers into match-fixing scandals. According to a source, players are offered a minimum of RM20,000 as payment to manipulate the outcome of a match in international tournaments.

Such a figure is definitely high for a player who has yet to make a mark, more so when they are offered to lose in early rounds.

Bookies would first study the winning odds on the many betting sites, before zooming in on the targeted players.

There are then various ways in which a bookie would approach a shuttler to fix matches.

The most common method is when a bookie meets the player in person to discuss the deal verbally. This way is said to be the safest.

However, sources also revealed that bookies do use other channels such as phone calls, mobile chat applications (WhatsApp and WeChat), and middle men, which include coaches and friends to carry out their dark deeds.

When a deal is on, the bookies will explain the manner in which a match is to be manipulated.

“The term ‘big-small’ is one of the most popular match fixing styles in badminton. If the bet is small, then the player who has agreed to the deal, will have to lose under 10 points and vice versa.

“Bets are sometimes also placed on the overall outcome of the match and games,” said the source.

On Tuesday an exclusive report by New Straits Times Sport shook the badminton fraternity when it revealed that a Malaysian player — who has played in major tournaments such as the All England and World Championships — was involved in a match-fixing allegation.

A day later, the BAM confirmed that not one but two independent players have been provisionally suspended by the Badminton World Federation from all competitions, pending an investigation.