Wimbledon alert over match-fixing

Three matches at this year’s Wimbledon triggered alerts for possible match-fixing, the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) revealed yesterday. One of the matches was from the main draw and the other two came in the qualifying tournament.

They will be assessed and reviewed by the TIU as part of its latest quarterly review, alongside one match from the French Open.

Alerts are raised in response to unusual betting patterns, which are not in and of themselves evidence of match-fixing. A number of other factors, such as playing conditions or an injury to one of the players, could account for anomalous betting patterns. The TIU receives information about suspicions of match-fixing from betting companies and regulators, and is obliged to investigate should a red flag be raised.

The suspicious matches at Wimbledon are not believed to be related to the unusually high 10 mid-match retirements in this year’s men’s tournament. It is also understood that no British players are under investigation.

The matches at grand slam level that prompted alerts are the biggest cause for concern, but as usual it is in the lower levels of the game where unusual betting patterns are most rife.

The majority of alerts (40 out of 53) were received for matches played on the lower level men’s ATP Challenger and ITF Futures circuits. Fitting into this pattern was the 28-year-old Australian Isaac Frost, who has never been ranked higher than 651, being charged with match fixing last month.

In total during the period in question, 31,281 professional matches were played, with the 53 alerts featuring in just 0.169 per cent of those matches.