(PARIS) — A Russian tennis player was placed in police custody Thursday night on charges of “sports corruption and organized gang scam targeting acts likely to have been committed in September 2020,” the Paris prosecutor’s office told ABC News.
At last year’s French Open, Russian player Yana Sizikova lost a doubles match with Madison Bregle, who is American, on Sept. 30 against Andrea Mitu and Patricia Maria Tig, both of Romania.
German newspaper Die Welt reports that the suspicions focus on the fifth game of the second set, won by the Romanian duo after two gross double faults by the 26-year-old Sizikova, who was taking part in the tournament for the first time.
Mitu and Tig won in straight sets, 7-6, 6-4. Several tens of thousands of euros would have been wagered with several betting operators in different countries on the winning of this match by the Romanian team.
Sizikova was competing in the 2021 French Open and is ranked 756th in singles. Alongside fellow Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova, Sizikova lost in the first doubles round on June 2.
Russian Tennis Federation’s president, Shamil Tarpischev, told the RIA news agency he was informed of Sizikova’s arrest, Reuters reports.
It has been an interesting year so far for the French Open, which gained widespread attention as world No. 2 Naomi Osaka withdrew for mental health concerns linked to media availabilities. World No. 12 Petra Kvitova later withdrew after hurting her ankle at a post-match press conference, while world No. 1 Ash Barty left the tournament following an on-court injury.
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