Tennis Integrity Unit Briefing Note April 2016

Match Alert Data - January to March 2016

The TIU has committed to publishing headline figures from the Match Alert data it receives from the betting industry, on a regular quarterly basis. Memorandums of Understanding with regulators and operators worldwide, provides alert data triggered by what is regarded by the betting industry as unusual or suspicious activity around a match. 

There is no industry standard set of indicators for match alerts. Different operators use different trigger points, meaning that one company may issue an alert on a particular match, but another will not.

Every alert received by the TIU is assessed and followed up as an indicator that something inappropriate may have happened. It is important to appreciate that an alert on its own is not evidence of match-fixing. There are many reasons other than corrupt activity that can explain unusual patterns, such as:

• incorrect odds-setting
• player fitness, fatigue and form
• playing conditions
• personal circumstances

However, if the analysis does suggest corrupt activity, the TIU will conduct a full investigation. 

Figures for Match Alerts received during the period January to March 2016, are detailed below:

The total of 48 alerts received during the quarter should be seen in the context of the 24,110 matches played around the world in that period, representing a tiny percentage of 0.2%. 

The data also confirms a pattern of reporting where the great majority of alerts originate from the lower levels of professional tennis; men’s ATP Challenger and ITF Futures and ITF Women’s events. 

In 2015, a full-year total of 246 alerts were received and assessed by the TIU; for the corresponding January to March period in 2015, 31 alerts were received. 

The 48 alerts are a combined aggregate of all alerts received from the betting industry and represent the most accurate and comprehensive data for the sport. In some cases, alerts are received from a number of operators on the same match. For the purposes of TIU assessment, follow up and reporting, these are treated as a single alert. 

Player Sanctions Update

Jatuporn Nalamphun suspended and fined: 17 February 2016: unranked Thai player Jatuporn Nalamphun was suspended for 18 months and fined US$5,000 after admitting to betting on tennis matches. He contested, but was found guilty of a further charge of failing to co-operate with a TIU Investigation. Data provided through Memorandums of Understanding with ESSA and the Licensing Authority in Gibraltar was instrumental in supporting the TIU investigation into the case.

Note: this sanction was announced by the TIU on 17 February 2016. 

Piotr Gadomski CAS Appeal: 21 March 2016: Polish player Piotr Gadomski’s appeal against a seven-year suspension and US$15,000 fine for breaches of the 2012 Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (Program) was heard at the Court of Arbitration in Sport in Lausanne. In September 2015 the player had been found guilty by an independent Hearing Officer of four breaches of the Program involving, among other evidence, matches at the F1, F2 and F3 Futures tournaments in Hong Kong in 2012. A decision on his appeal is expected during June. 

Nick Lindahl fined for match fixing offenses: 18 April 2016: former Australian player Nick Lindahl was fined A$1000 and given a 12-month good behaviour bond by NSW magistrate Michelle Goodwin, for match-fixing offenses. The TIU has worked closely with Australian law enforcement agencies on the case since September 2013. Criminal proceedings take precedence over tennis discipline, but now that sentence has been passed TIU investigations under the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program will move forward. 

Independent Review Panel

On 27 January, 2016 the governing bodies of tennis announced an Independent Review Panel to review and report on the appropriateness and effectiveness of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program, and make recommendations for change. 

Under the leadership of Adam Lewis QC, the work of the Panel to date has included preliminary meetings with the sport’s governing bodies, collation of core documents and contact with persons of interest to obtain relevant information. In addition, the Panel has identified a list of issues and areas of inquiry and begun a further schedule of interviews and research. 

Mr Lewis has been joined on the Panel by two highly experienced and distinguished legal practitioners. Beth Wilkinson is a leading US litigator and founding partner in Wilkinson Walsh + Eskovitz based in Washington DC. She is a former Assistant US Attorney in New York: www.wilkinsonwalsh.com/who-we-are/beth-wilkinson 

Marc Henzelin is a partner in the Geneva-based law firm LALIVE; he has been a judge at the Cour de cassation of Geneva since 2009:www.lalive.ch/en/people/index.php?lawyer=149 

The Panel’s final report is expected to take at least 12 months to produce and tennis has committed to act on and implement its full recommendations. 

Any party wishing to provide information to the Panel should contact Jonathan Ellis of Charles Russell Speechlys LLP, the Solicitor and Secretary to the Independent Review Panel, at Tennis.IRP@crsblaw.com 

TIU Recruitment Update

TIU’s resource and capability is being expanded with the recruitment of an additional data analyst and an investigator. Nadia Tuominen joined the London-based team to fill the data analyst role in early April. Her appointment will be followed by that of an experienced investigator during May. TIU staffing is reviewed on a regular basis in conjunction with the Tennis Integrity Board, which comprises of Philip Brook, AELTC Chairman, David Haggerty, President of the ITF, Chris Kermode, Executive Chairman and President of the ATP, and Steve Simon, Chief Executive Officer of the WTA.

Next issue

The next issue of the TIU Briefing Note will be published in early July. To be added to the circulation, contact Mark Harrison at mark.harrison@tennisintegrityunit.com