Oliver Anderson, former Australian Open junior champion, fined for match-fixing
Oliver Anderson, the 2016 Australian Open junior champion, has pleaded guilty to a charge of corrupting the outcome of a sporting event. He agreed to throw a set in the opening round match of a Challenger tournament in Traralgon last year.
Former Australian Open junior champion Oliver Anderson was fined Aus$500 (US$374) on Tuesday for fixing a match, but escaped a conviction after admitting he threw a set, reports said.
(Read | Australian Open tennis junior champion Oliver Anderson charged with match fixing)
The 19-year-old Australian appeared in the Latrobe Valley Magistrates Court over the incident during a first-round clash at the second-tier Traralgon Challenger event in Victoria in 2016.
He admitted a charge of corrupting the outcome of a sporting event.
The court heard Anderson, the 2016 Australian Open junior winner, was approached a few days before the match by a friend who asked if he would drop the first set, broadcaster ABC reported.
(Read | Japanese tennis player Junn Mitsuhashi gets life ban for match-fixing)
He agreed when he realised he could easily beat his first round opponent Harrison Lombe, some 900 spots below him in the rankings.
He lost the first set 4-6, before taking the next two sets 6-0, 6-2 to win the match.
Police were alerted to suspicious activity by betting company Crownbet after a punter tried to wager Aus$10,000 on the match, ABC said. It was rejected although a lower Aus$2,000 bet was accepted.
(Read | Serving scandal: How India is no stranger to fixing in tennis)
In addition to the fine, Anderson was placed on a two-year good-behaviour bond but no conviction was recorded.
News of the match-fixing charge surfaced just days before this year’s Australian Open, with leading players at the time voicing frustration at another scandal hitting the sport.
On the eve of the Australian Open in 2016, there were bombshell media allegations that match-fixing was rife in tennis and the authorities had done little to counter corruption.