In the tight, echoing confines of the outside courts, players inevitably hear every courtside remark, even in the tensest moments. While most shouts sound supportive, some players now suspect that ulterior motives may be at play. Earlier this season, Switzerland’s Leandro Riedi even reported about seemingly enthusiastic fans, saying, “It feels like more and more bettors are coming to watch.” Now, a match between Adrian Andreev and Lilian Marmousez has sparked similar concern, as another overly vocal spectator drew scrutiny.

At the latest Challenger tournament in Maia, Portugal, a surprising incident unfolded during the eighth edition of the event. In the R32 match between Adrian Andreev and Lilian Marmousez, the tension was already high. 

During the second set, with Andreev leading 6-5 as Marmousez prepared to serve, the umpire made an unexpected announcement.

“Information in court for there are about 15 people that clearly bet on Adrian Andreev, and they are on their phones the whole time and clapping very loudly for Andreev just to let you know about the situation.”

The moment stunned both players and fans. Despite the loud support, the situation did not work in Andreev’s favor. The Bulgarian, who hit 6 aces and 2 double faults, still lost the match.

Although he managed to win the second set 7-6 (7-0), the momentum shifted sharply. In the third set, Marmousez took full control. The Frenchman won the set 6-2, converting 6 of his 10 break points.

Marmousez finished the match with 18 total games won, giving him 5 more than Andreev. His consistency proved too strong in the closing stages.

However, betting-related incidents are not new in tennis, as players across both the WTA and ATP tours have repeatedly voiced concerns about such behavior throughout the year.

Katie Boulter reveals death threats and abuse, exposing tennis’s betting dark side

Katie Boulter, in June this year, shared the disturbing abuse she receives from individuals tied to tennis betting. The threats reached a shocking level during her French Open first-round match against Carole Monnet on May 29.

Boulter lost the first-set tie-break but went on to win the match 6-7(4), 6-1, 6-1. Still, the tiebreak loss triggered a wave of hateful messages. One person wrote, “Hope you get cancer.” Another warned about damaging her “grandmother’s grave if she’s not dead by tomorrow” and mentioned “candles and a coffin for your entire family.”

She is not alone in facing such abuse. Janice Tjen, a 23-year-old Indonesian player who beat Germany’s Caroline Werner 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-2 in the first round of the Chennai Open recently, also received harassment. She said, “I got some messages even though I won my match.”

Chinese Taipei’s Joanna Garland shared a similar experience. After battling for more than three hours in humid conditions to defeat Japan’s Mei Yamaguchi 5-7, 7-5, 7-5 in the second round, she said, “After I won the match and came off the court, I had 200 abusive messages on my Instagram.”

The problem extends to the men’s side as well. A clip from The Changeover podcast with Jody Maginley and Justin Roberts highlighted how common these incidents are. Maginley asked Roberts about the angriest messages he had ever received, and Roberts replied calmly, “Less than like seven, at most.”

The discussion then shifted to rising American Alex Michelsen. Maginley explained, “We Collab with a lot of the athletes, so we have on. So we recently had on Michelsen, and Michelsen was playing, I don’t even know what match it was like recently that he lost. Maybe Washington.”

These incidents show how deeply betting-related abuse has penetrated the sport. With threats becoming more common and more severe, tennis authorities now face growing pressure to assess the seriousness of the issue.

The sport must determine how to protect players from harassment that directly affects their mental health and well-being.