Tennis Pair Banned for Gambling

Two doubles specialists are the latest players to be banned under the Association of Tennis Professionals' new anti-corruption program.

Latest punishments
The ATP, the body responsible for the men's side of the sport, banned Czech player Frantisek Cermak for 10 weeks and fined him $15,000, and slapped Slovak Michael Mertinak with a two-week ban and $3000 fine.

Neither player was found to have placed bets on their own matches, or to have intended to affect the outcome of matches they placed bets on.

The ATP said its investigation into the pair, begun in November 2007, found that Cermak had wagered on tennis matches during a period dating from 9 September 2006 until 1 February 2007, and that Mertinak had done the same in October 2006.

Ensuring the "integrity of our sport"
In a statement on the bans, ATP executive vice president Gayle David Bradshaw said anti-gambling punishments should send a clear message.

"The ATP's tennis anti-corruption program is clear that gambling on any form of tennis match will not be tolerated," he said.

"The program was introduced to ensure the integrity of our sport, and all connected to the tour have a duty and responsibility to ensure that integrity is upheld."

The fight against corruption in tennis
Prior to the current round of investigations, five Italians - Alessio di Mauro, Potito Starace, Daniele Bracciali, Giorgio Galimberti and Federico Luzzi - had already been banned by the ATP for gambling on tennis matches.

Di Mauro was the first player to be banned by the program, handed nine months in November last year after being found guilty of making 120 bets with an online bookmaker in 2006 and 2007.

In June we reported on the trialing of new rules at Wimbledon designed to crack down on player corruption.  The new rules, agreed upon by the world tennis body and the All-England Club - which runs Wimbledon - included a requirement for players to report suspicious activity within 48 hours of being approached by gambling syndicates in relation to match-fixing.