Tennis authorities and the International Tennis Integrity Agency, are doing their best to keep the sport of tennis clean, and that's why another seven players were banned for match-fixing.
International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) very often deals with banned substances found in players' bodies, but in recent years, we saw a significant increase in the number of players banned for match-fixing or even officials who were banned for corruption.
The latest case comes from Belgium, where seven players were suspended and sanctioned. The case should be related to the match-fixing tycoon Grigor Sargsyan, who received a five-year custodial sentence.
Seven players, who were involved in the match-fixing were Arnaud Graisse, Arthur de Greef, Julien Dubail, Romain Barbosa, Maxime Authom, Omar Salman, and Alec Witmeur.
The most-known and formerly highest-ranked of these players is Arthur de Greef, who reached a career-high ranking of 113 on the ATP Tour. He has been given a suspension of three years and nine months, along with a $45,000 fine.
Romain Barbosa, former world no. 403, received the same punishment, while Alec Witmeur, former world no. 1056, was suspended for two years and seven months, along with a $30,000 fine.
Arnaud Graisse, who was never ranked in the ATP Rankings, received a $60,000 fine along with 58-month suspension, and former world no. 371, Julien Dubail was suspended for three years and nine months, while he received a $45,000 fine.
Maxime Authom, who was also one of the higher-ranked players, with his career-high being 143rd place, was suspended for three years and nine months and got a $30,000 fine.
Omar Salman, the last of the seven players, received the same fine, but his suspension is the shortest, with two years and seven months given to the former world no. 464.
This case once again serves as a remainder to all players that match-fixing, or any other type of influence on the match result, isn't going to be rewarding in the long-term, as the ITIA almost every time punishes the offenders.
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