Novak Djokovic spoke in depth for the first time about being offered $200,000 (£140,000) to fix a match 10 years ago on a day of extended drama and fevered speculation.
However Roger Federer, the game’s most venerated player, called the latest allegations, to be aired on the BBC on Tuesday night, “far-fetched”.
While pointing out that no hard evidence had been produced, Djokovic and Serena Williams, the top-ranked players in the men’s and women’s game, were adamant there was no wrongdoing beyond minor incidents on the edges of the sport.
An unnamed grand-slam winner was under suspicion the BBC claimed which conducted a long investigation in company with Buzzfeed News. The investigations also claimed that eight players who have been investigated during the past decade are in the main draw here in Melbourne.
The investigators claimed to possess a “cache of documents” that date back to 2007 which exposes “widespread suspected match-fixing at the top level of world tennis, including at Wimbledon.
“I’ve heard about the story and I read that there were a couple of players mentioned who are not active any more, talking about the matches that have happened almost 10 years ago. Of course, there is no room for any match-fixing or corruption in our sport. We’re trying to keep it as clean as possible. We have, I think, a sport that has evolved, and have upgraded our programmes and authorities to deal with these particular cases,” Djokovic said after his match at the Australian Open.
“I don’t think a shadow is cast over our sport. People are talking about names, guessing who these players are. But there’s no real proof or evidence yet of any active players, for that matter. As long as it’s like that, it’s just speculation,” he said.
Djokovic claimed that he had been offered $200,000 to throw a first-round match in St Petersburg, a tournament he did not eventually attend, in 2006.
“I was not approached directly,” he said.
“Well … I was approached through people that were working with me at that time, that were with my team. Of course, we threw it away right away. It didn’t even get to me, the guy that was trying to talk to me, he didn’t even get to me directly. There was nothing out of it,” he added.
“Unfortunately there were some, in those times, those days, rumours, some talks, some people were going around. They were dealt with. In the last six, seven years, I haven’t heard anything similar. I personally was never approached directly, so I have nothing more to say about that,” Djokovic said.
"it made me feel terrible because i don't want to be anyhow linked to this. Somebody may call it an opportunity. For me, that's an act of unsportsmanship, a crime in sport, honestly. I don't support it. I think there is no room for it in any sport, especially in tennis," he further added.
"I always have been taught and have been surrounded with people that had nurtured and, you know, respected the sport's values. that's the way I've grown up. Fortunately for me, I didn;t need to, you know, get directly involved in these particular situations," Djokovic said.
(Source: www.theguardian.com)
However Roger Federer, the game’s most venerated player, called the latest allegations, to be aired on the BBC on Tuesday night, “far-fetched”.
While pointing out that no hard evidence had been produced, Djokovic and Serena Williams, the top-ranked players in the men’s and women’s game, were adamant there was no wrongdoing beyond minor incidents on the edges of the sport.
An unnamed grand-slam winner was under suspicion the BBC claimed which conducted a long investigation in company with Buzzfeed News. The investigations also claimed that eight players who have been investigated during the past decade are in the main draw here in Melbourne.
The investigators claimed to possess a “cache of documents” that date back to 2007 which exposes “widespread suspected match-fixing at the top level of world tennis, including at Wimbledon.
“I’ve heard about the story and I read that there were a couple of players mentioned who are not active any more, talking about the matches that have happened almost 10 years ago. Of course, there is no room for any match-fixing or corruption in our sport. We’re trying to keep it as clean as possible. We have, I think, a sport that has evolved, and have upgraded our programmes and authorities to deal with these particular cases,” Djokovic said after his match at the Australian Open.
“I don’t think a shadow is cast over our sport. People are talking about names, guessing who these players are. But there’s no real proof or evidence yet of any active players, for that matter. As long as it’s like that, it’s just speculation,” he said.
Djokovic claimed that he had been offered $200,000 to throw a first-round match in St Petersburg, a tournament he did not eventually attend, in 2006.
“I was not approached directly,” he said.
“Well … I was approached through people that were working with me at that time, that were with my team. Of course, we threw it away right away. It didn’t even get to me, the guy that was trying to talk to me, he didn’t even get to me directly. There was nothing out of it,” he added.
“Unfortunately there were some, in those times, those days, rumours, some talks, some people were going around. They were dealt with. In the last six, seven years, I haven’t heard anything similar. I personally was never approached directly, so I have nothing more to say about that,” Djokovic said.
"it made me feel terrible because i don't want to be anyhow linked to this. Somebody may call it an opportunity. For me, that's an act of unsportsmanship, a crime in sport, honestly. I don't support it. I think there is no room for it in any sport, especially in tennis," he further added.
"I always have been taught and have been surrounded with people that had nurtured and, you know, respected the sport's values. that's the way I've grown up. Fortunately for me, I didn;t need to, you know, get directly involved in these particular situations," Djokovic said.
(Source: www.theguardian.com)