Iga Swiatek highlights she hates to see players receiving verbal abuse from angry bettors but also adds she is aware that betting companies are “a big business” and therefore will likely always be there.
While tennis players often post hateful and threatening messages they receive after losses, it is not a secret that some tennis tournaments have sponsorship deals with betting sites.
And the more sponsors, the more money comes into the game.
In Indian Wells, reigning Australian Open champion Madison Keys said that there is “not a black-and-white answer” to whether gambling in tennis is good or bad because nice money comes from those deals but also there’s that part where players are abused.
After Keys, Swiatek was asked the same question.
Swiatek: It will always be there because it’s big business…
“There’s no point to think if it’s good or bad, because it’s always going to be there since it’s big business,” the world No. 2 explained.
“I think, for sure, the thing that we as players feel is the negative comments and hate, because people are sometimes losing money because we lose or because we win. So, this is what impacts us. For sure I feel like it’s not positive, and not good at all.
But hate is going to be out there on the Internet anyway. There are ways to stop it with like algorithms and the apps that are blocking it a little bit.
“But people put out on the Internet whatever they want, because it’s easy, you know. So this is the part I would say that hits us.
“But the whole concept of gambling and business, you know, behind it, I’m not really that well-oriented to really say. Sorry.”
Some tournaments have been using artificial intelligence apps that detect possible hateful messages and block players from receiving them.
However, that method is still in its early stages.
Tennis World USA