Gambling has entered the sports industry and wreaked havoc on all those present. This act has defamed the games that people enjoy watching, making them no longer about the athletic prowess of the athletes on the field, but rather about the amount of money behind each candidate attempting to secure victory. This act completely ruins the event, as it is the unknown that makes sports entertaining, as well as the idea that anyone could win given the odds, and if they train and prepare and push themselves to a higher level, they can bring home the top prize regardless of who they are against or what tournament they are participating in. The gambling can extend from one individual to thousands, from a single player to an entire team.
Tennis has had a troubled past when it comes to game rigging. While events have occurred in the past that were questionable, a governing body was set up in order to investigate the offenses and ensure that the guilty would be punished. In the Australian Open, multiple players were under investigation and facing a ban after they allegedly threw their matches in order to give one side a win over the other. Most cases occurred in Europe, where tennis is an increasingly popular sport. The players must comply with regulation rules or face a long ban as a result of their illicit actions. While the measures have worked, there are always ways to circumnavigate this system and put the power back into the hands of those who are in possession of more money and influence than their opponents and those who seek to keep gambling from interfering with the sport of tennis.
A simple way to go about this is to bribe the line judge. If the judge is bribed just the right amount he or she is capable of making close calls swing one way or another, and, therefore, is capable of giving one play a huge advantage over another. To make matters worse, these judges are able to get away with it and face much softer penalties should they be caught. In one instance, Denis Pitner, a judge who was banned from all tennis events was allowed to watch both the US Open as well as another world event that starred two of tennis’s top athletes: Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. He was allowed to judge two major events that he should never have been allowed to be present at. This demonstrates a major oversight, and while it may be a rare event, it still calls for greater action to prevent gambling from ruining sports. Tennis may not have as many gamblers to deal with, but the fact that they are finding a way to circumnavigate the system and have judges sneak in under the radar to judge a game so the highest level means the tennis world must find better ways to deal with the issues, or they risk losing everything to corruption. Without stronger measures, the world of tennis is in serious danger.
