Dutch tennis player Yannick Ebbinghaus has been suspended for six months and fined for betting illegally on matches, an anti-corruption body announced Monday. The Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) said the 23-year-old admitted breaching article D.1.a of anti-corruption rules 67 times between May 2012 and February 2013.
The article outlaws any direct or indirect attempted or actual wager on the outcome of any aspect of tennis by players. Three months of the ban will be suspended provided Ebbinghaus does not repeat the offence and attends "anti-corruption education training", the TIU said in an emailed statement from London. It added: "$5,000 of the $10,000 fine will be considered paid in full if the player cooperates with the Tennis Integrity Unit in educating others about the prohibition against betting." Last week, the TIU, which is run by the sport's Grand Slam Committee, the International Tennis Federation, ATP and WTA tours, said it had banned Russian player Sergei Krotiouk for life for match-fixing.
The 34-year-old world number 749 was also fined $60,000 and was the third man in the last two years to be barred from tennis for life. Ebbinghaus' highest ranking was 1,123 in February this year and currently stands at 1,158. He has picked up only $5,682 in prize money in his entire singles and doubles career, according to the atpworldtour.com website.