ATP Releases Regulations for Matches During Coronavirus Pandemic

Published 04/20/2020, 9:16 AM EDT

The professional tennis tours are suspended until at least July 13 due to the outbreak of coronavirus. However, exhibition tennis is set to return next month behind closed doors in different parts of the world. Consequently, the Tennis Integrity Unit, who is appointed by the ITF, ATP, and WTA, has released a warning to the players during the unsanctioned events.

The ATP issued a statement for the exhibition matches during the pandemic. The statement emphasized the elevated risk of corruption during such unsanctioned events.

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“We need to warn that there is a high risk of corruption” – ATP

TIU, which regulates corruption and match-fixing in tennis, has warned the players that even if they are not playing any matches under ATP, WTA, Grand Slams, ITF or any national federation, they will still have to abide by the rules set by TIU.

The statement explained that any tennis match will be valid for players investigated and punished if they break the rules. The athletes will still be covered by the Tennis Anti-Corruption Programme (TACP) while playing the privately organized exhibition matches.

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Some of the rules reminded by TIU are as follows:-

Tennis players cannot bet on any tennis game.
They cannot facilitate or encourage others to bet on games.
The players wear clothing with tennis betting company logos.

“We understand that all of these events will be attractive for athletes to make money,” says the statement. “While the opportunity to play is welcome, we need to warn that there is a high risk of corruption or an attempt to seek corruption in these environments. Very important to note that the anti-corruption rules will still apply to you as a tennis player.”

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Rafael Nadal Comes up With Interesting Plan to Restart Tennis

On May 1, the first exhibition matches will be held in Germany led by Dustin Brown. Moreover, Patrick Mouratoglou’s Academy will host a five-week Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) series in France. The Rafa Nadal Academy is also organizing with the ATP Tour to allow players to play practice matches which can be broadcasted to fans.

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Starting off as a tennis author in 2018, Varun Khanna has gone on to contribute to EssentiallySports in various capacities. After setting up interviews with the likes of Serena Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou, Alizé Cornet, and Noah Rubin, Varun is now part of all major ATP and WTA press conferences and has gone on to pen more than 1300 articles for EssentiallySports. He now heads the tennis and NBA division of the organization.

ATP Releases Regulations for Matches During Coronavirus Pandemic

“We need to warn that there is a high risk of corruption” – ATP

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