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Players are prohibited from playing in or attending any tennis event sanctioned by any international tennis governing body or national association.
Six Moroccan tennis players have been banned for breaches of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP) rules.

The bans, which range from nine years to a lifetime ban, stem from match-fixing charges, the International Tennis Integrity Agency announced. The highest-ranked player among the six reached a career-high rank of No. 576.

More: Nadal Set For Tour Return

The cases were ruled on by independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer Charles Hollander QC, who after a hearing ruled that:

Amine Ahouda is banned for 11 years and fined $5,000 USD.

Anas Chakrouni is banned for 10 years and fined $5,000 USD.

Ayoub Chakrouni is banned for life and fined $10,000 USD.

Mohamed Zakaria Khalil is banned for 9 years and fined $5,000 USD.

Soufiane El Mesbahi is banned for 9 years and fined $5,000 USD.

Yassir Kilani is banned for 9 years and fined $5,000 USD.

The sanctions mean that the players are prohibited from playing in or attending any tennis event authorized or sanctioned by any international tennis governing body or national association for the length of their bans.

Mr. Hollander found that the players were guilty of multiple offenses and a variety of match fixing charges, including fixing elements of matches, receiving money for fixing and failing to report corrupt approaches. The ITIA investigation found that the players’ offences were linked and therefore were subject to a joint hearing.

The players’ suspensions begin from the date of their provisional suspension on July 13th, 2021 and they have 20 business days from the date of receipt of the decision to lodge any appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

To read the individual charges for each player, please click the ITIA announcement here.

Photo credit: Mark Peterson/Corleve

The 26-year-old finished 2021 at a career-high ranking.By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Tuesday December 14, 2021

American Mackenzie McDonald has locked down the ATP’s “Comeback Player of the Year” award. The American, who rose 140 spots in the rankings in 2021, from 194 to 54, completed his recovery from hamstring surgery in 2019 by emerging as a consistent threat on tour.

The 26-year-old finishes the season at a career-high ranking of 54 after a season that saw him go 18-19 and reach his first career ATP final at the Citi Open in Washington, D.C.

McDonald also reached the second week at the Australian Open, where he became the lowest-ranked player to reach the last 16 at the Australian Open since World No. 248 Canas in 2004.

McDonald also won the Nur-Sultan challenger title and reached the semifinals of two other challengers. He won a total of 42 matches across all levels and qualifying.

The winner of the Comeback Player of the Year in the 2021 #ATPAwards is: Mackenzie McDonald 👏 pic.twitter.com/u4AGfiyMJE

— ATP Tour (@atptour) December 14, 2021

“It’s extremely rewarding. For me it’s a massive accomplishment, honestly,” he told the ATP. “At the end of the year I was hoping I was going to be nominated, I got that and then actually winning it is really cool for me. It was a really big comeback and I feel like I put in all the hard work. When I was going through the rehab process I did everything I possibly could to get myself back.”

Rafael Nadal will headline the Melbourne 250 event the week before the 2022 AO.
The 2022 season will begin with a bang.

Get ready for Rafa time.

More: IMG Acquires Mutua Madrid Open

Rafael Nadal will make his Tour-level return at the Melbourne 250 tournament, set for January 3-9th. Grigor Dimitrov, Kei Nishikori, Reilly Opelka, Alexei Popyrin, David Goffin and Jordan Thompson are among the players set to join Nadal in the Melbourne 250 field.

It will be Nadal's first ATP event in five months. Nadal pulled the plug on his 2021 season to rehab a chronic foot injury following a three-set loss to Lloyd Harris in Washington, DC last August.

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar (@rafanadalacademy)

The 35-year-old Nadal, who is scheduled to play the Mubadala World Tennis Championship exhibition in Abu Dhabi this month, will use the Melbourne 250 as preparation for the Australian Open, which begins on January 17th.

The sixth-ranked Spaniard and world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who is on the entry list for the ATP Cup in Sydney and the Australian Open, are both chasing a men's record 21st Grand Slam championship at the 2022 Australian Open.

The Big 3—Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer—are deadlocked at 20 Grand Slam titles apiece.

Two-time Olympic gold medal champion Nadal cites Djokovic's lofty level of play—and the fact rival Federer is rehabbing from his fourth knee surgery and the Spaniard himself is coming back from a foot injury—pointing to the 34-year-old Serbian owning the men’s major mark when all is said and done.

“Djokovic is best positioned to be the player with the most Grand Slams," Nadal said in an interview with Vamos on Movistar+.

"You don't have to fool yourself—Federer is where he is and I am where I am,” Nadal said. “However, Djokovic is playing well and in a good moment.”

Nadal has won at least one title an Open Era-record 18 straight years. However, Djokovic, who has won 30 of 58 career matches vs. Nadal, has dominated the Spaniard on hard courts. In hard-court clashes, Djokovic is riding a nine-match winning streak and a 19-set winning streak vs. Nadal since losing to the left-hander at the 2013 US Open.

Photo credit: Cameron Spencer/Getty

Western & Southern Financial Group will remain Cincinnati title sponsor for another three years.
Western & Southern will retain its role as Cincinnati title sponsor.

Western & Southern Financial Group has extended its title sponsorship of the Western & Southern Open Masters 1000 for an additional three years.

More: IMG Acquires Mutua Madrid Open

The partnership is the longest active naming rights agreement for a professional tennis tournament in North America. Last August was the 20th edition of the tournament, with Western & Southern as the title sponsor.

“We are honored to continue our support for world-class tennis in Cincinnati,” said John F. Barrett, Chairman, President and CEO of the Western & Southern Financial Group. “This wonderful tournament is both a living tribute to Cincinnati’s rich history and an important part of its bright future.”

As part of this renewal, the Western & Southern Open will feature digital back walls in 2022, which have not previously been used at a combined ATP and WTA event in North America. The LED back walls will create a wraparound effect in conjunction with the digital side walls that have been used since 2017. In addition, LED digital signage has been used at the tournament for the net judge box since 2018 and on the umpire's chair since 2019.

Proud to announce the @WesternSouthern Financial Group will extend its title sponsorship of the Western & Southern Open for three more years 🤝

Looking forward to more great years working together to bring world class tennis to Cincinnati.#CincyTennis #WesternSouthern pic.twitter.com/YXpbf7v3Az

— Western & Southern Open (@CincyTennis) December 9, 2021

The Western & Southern Open features an ATP Masters 1000 as well as a WTA 1000 tournament in the same week at the same venue, making it one of five events to host concurrent top tier tour tournaments along with Indian Wells, Madrid, Miami and Rome.

“The decades-long support from Western & Southern Financial Group has afforded us the opportunity to grow the Western & Southern Open into one of the premier events on the tennis calendar,” said Katie Haas, COO of the Western & Southern Open. “Our partnership with Western & Southern has been critical in allowing us to showcase Cincinnati to a global audience and we look forward to continuing this relationship for years to come.”

Since becoming a single-week tournament featuring both tours in 2011, the Western & Southern Open has attracted more than 1.8 million spectators, including ticket buyers who have traveled to Cincinnati from all 50 states and more than 35 countries. International broadcast agreements deliver coverage to more than 50 million viewers in over 160 countries.

Locally, through its partnership with Tennis for Charity, the tournament has contributed more than $11 million to community initiatives, including Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, the UC Health Barrett Cancer Center and Tennis for City Youth.

The Western & Southern Open is held annually at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio.

The 2022 tournament will be played August 13-21st.

Photo credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty

The 24 teams will compete to join Russia, Croatia, Serbia and Great Britain in next year's finals. By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Sunday December 5, 2021

The ITF and Kosmos Tennis have announced the draw for the 2022 Davis Cup by Rakuten Qualifiers, which will take place on 4-5 March.

Serbia and Great Britain have been announced as the two wild card nations for the Davis Cup by Rakuten Finals 2022. By reaching the 2021 final, Croatia and the Russian Tennis Federation have also secured automatic qualification for the 2022 Finals.

The 12 winning nations from the 2022 Qualifiers will reach next year’s Davis Cup Finals, where they will join Croatia, Russian Tennis Federation, Great Britain and Serbia in a 16-nation line-up.

The 2022 Davis Cup by Rakuten Qualifiers draw in full 👇#DavisCupFinals #byRakuten pic.twitter.com/o3Uab0SNfk

— Davis Cup (@DavisCup) December 5, 2021

Qualifiers draw

France (s) (c*) v Ecuador
Spain (s) (c) v Romania
Finland (c) v Belgium (s)
USA (s) (c) v Colombia
Netherlands (c) v Canada (s)
Brazil (c) v Germany (s)
Slovakia (c) v Italy (s)
Australia (s) (c) v Hungary
Norway (c*) v Kazakhstan (s)
Sweden (s) (c) v Japan
Argentina (s) (c) v Czech Republic
Korea, Rep. (c*) v Austria (s)

(s) = seed; (c) = choice of ground; * = choice of ground decided by lot

The Russian explains his views on his celebrations and whether or not he is intentionally provoking the public.By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday December 4, 2021

It’s safe to say that fans in Madrid enjoy booing Daniil Medvedev. It’s also safe to say that the Russian doesn’t mind at all. On Saturday after clinching Team Russia’s victory over Germany with a 6-4 6-4 victory over Jan-Lennard Struff, Daniil Medvedev made the most of his post-match celebration, taking a page from Cristiano Ronaldo’s celly playbook as the crowd in Madrid showered him with boos.

“When Cristiano played in Madrid, he was doing this celebration a lot of times,” Medvedev said. “That's why I decided to do it. I felt it was fun. But, yeah, probably it was the wrong decision, which can happen. Yeah, I had to go with it and to stick with it because I like to stick to what I do.”

Medvedev talked more about his celebration methodology about it after the match, when he was asked if he enjoyed provoking the public.

“You're right in a way, it's a game which I don't play on purpose,” he said. “Everything I do, especially on the court even more than in life, is pure emotions.

When in Madrid…

'Calmaaa' 🤫@DaniilMedwed | #DavisCupFinals #byRakuten pic.twitter.com/GHhASMqLOY

— Davis Cup (@DavisCup) December 4, 2021

“In life I'm more calm. When you ask a question, you guys, I have time to think, ‘Okay, what do I think? What should I answer?’ It's the same with any other person in real life. On tennis court, it's different. It's a lot of adrenaline going on. I hate to lose. There is less time and less power in myself to stop and think. So I go with emotions which sometimes is good, sometimes is not good.”

Medvedev was told by a reporter that “we very often ready that the sport doesn’t have the same characters that it had in the past,” and he gave his thoughts on this subject as well.

“I think definitely if somebody says that we need real characters, and when I say 'real' I don't want to say strong, weak, good or bad, but just real. Everything I do on the court is what I feel at this moment, so it's real,” he said. “I definitely will be 100 percent honest: definitely don't provoke the public on purpose. When you play a tennis match, you are alone there. There is 20,000 people, sometimes for you, sometimes against you, sometimes something to provoke them, it's actually not to make them mad or sad or against me. It's something that I feel in this moment. We see it in any sport.”

In the end Medvedev says he has some regrettable moments, being the emotional character that he is, but he wouldn’t change a thing. Maybe, in time, the public’s perception of him will (though it is already quite favorable).

He mentioned his infamous coin-throwing moment at Wimbledon, which drew the ire of the tennis community and earned him a fine of $14,500 after his five-set loss to Ruben Bemelmans. It was seen as insulting to umpire Mariana Alves, and Medvedev to this day admits that he regrets that moment. But it hasn’t forced him into a shell. Rather it has just made him realize that a line exists and that it’s important not to cross it.

“I don't see anything too bad in it,” he said. “Of course, even from some of what you remember, for example what happened in Wimbledon, that was not nice and I regret it. Again, it was pure emotions. It was not something fake or something where I think about something. It was pure emotions. I regret and it was not beautiful, not good. But that's also how you learn. You make mistakes and you learn.”

Medvedev also admitted that it is not so easy for the younger generation to match the squeaky clean on-court behavior of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, a standard to which many players are held to by the public.

“I think the tough part for the young generation, because we had Roger and Rafa – I go with my words – they are probably I want to say one of the most fairest sportsmen in all the history of the sport, and they were both playing together, and they both won amazing titles. Now when somebody in tennis is not like this, people tend to not like them and say, ‘How come you're not like Roger and Rafa?’ Guess what? Everybody is different. I think the moment when they retire and there are going to be new fans who didn't see Roger and Rafa live, that's what it's going to come back to where people are going to like other characters than this.”

The American concludes a solid season that saw him win 33 matches. By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Sunday November 28, 2021

A first Davis Cup win for Frances Tiafoe was a small consolation for Team USA on Sunday as they fell to Colombia (2-1) and finished their Davis Cup Finals campaign with an 0-2 record.

That small consolation came thanks to Tiafoe’s gigantic effort. Last week the American was on vacation and thinking that his season was over when he got the call last week that he would need to replace Taylor Fritz in the lineup.

The American didn’t hesitate to answer the bell.

“Felt extremely good. Never won a Davis Cup match before,” Tiafoe said after defeating Nicolas Mejia, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(7), saving two match points in the process. “Last tie I played in 2018, lost both, lost in the fifth rubber. Borna was super emotional, so I know how it feels on the other side. Still had somewhat of a chance to get through. It's not looking like it now, but, yeah, I just really wanted to win. Just in general for Davis Cup win and for everybody, I'm already out here. I was on vacation before this. I wasn't supposed to play. I came out here, I'm going to give it my all. Yeah, it was emotional, but in the end I'm happy I got a win for everybody and I put myself on the line for the country.”

American Captain Mardy Fish was disappointed that his team would not leave Turin with a win, but proud and satisfied to see Tiafoe raise his game for the stars and stripes.

Big Foe gets @usta up and running 💪#DavisCupFinals #byRakuten | @FTiafoe pic.twitter.com/6aTkp81DyR

— Davis Cup (@DavisCup) November 28, 2021

“It was great, great to have him,” he said. “I didn't realize he hadn't won a singles, he was 0-2. So I saw that before the match. Yeah, it's great to have Frances's energy, his smile. It's infectious on the team, and I was certainly proud to sit there and watch him compete.”

Tiafoe had lost his only two Davis Cup singles rubbers back in 2018, to Marin Cilic and Borna Coric, as the Croatians defeated Team USA 3-2 in the World Group Semifinals.

Tiafoe didn’t have much time to pull himself out of vacation mode – which made his victory all the more impressive.

He says the got the call last Saturday and cancelled his Thanksgiving plans immediately.

Before a sold-out crowd, Emma Raducanu gave home fans what they wanted topping Elena-Gabriela Ruse, 6-3, 7-6(3).
Emma Raducanu brought British buzz back to Royal Albert Hall.

Before a sold-out crowd at the iconic London venue, Raducanu gave British fans what they wanted on the final day of the ATP Champions Tour’s Champions Tennis. US Open champion Raducanu defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse, 6-3, 7-6(3).

More: Djokovic on Davis Cup Tradition

The crowd was buzzing to see the British star play her first match on British soil following her historic US Open victory. Throughout the match, there was playful banter between the two friends with Ruse inviting a young ball boy to play and ended up winning a point for her in the opening set.

Photo credit: IMG/@ChampionsTennis

In doubles, Mansour Bahrami and David Ferrer defeated Mikael Pernfors and Nicolas Almagro, 7-6(3). Raducanu delighted fans when she came back on court to play with fan favorite Mansour Bahrami in the doubles, an idol of hers since she was a little girl.

Champions Tennis sees players who have held the World No. 1 ranking, reached a Grand Slam singles final or been a singles player in a victorious Davis Cup team, compete in a mixture of team and individual events in both singles and doubles.

This day also marks the last time the tournament was held at the historic Royal Albert Hall, with this year's tournament offering tennis lovers a fantastic final opportunity to watch legends of the game battle it out in the beautiful surroundings of this legendary building.

Photo credit: IMG/@ChampionsTennis

The tour reacts to eliminate unecessary dead time during matches.By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Tuesday November 23, 2021

The ATP Tour has announced new rules relating to toilet breaks, attire changes to come into effect from 2022, in addition to a proposed change to the Medical time out rule, with starting dates to be announced.

The new rules come in response to controversy over the length in toilet breaks, particularly at the the US Open, which saw Stefanos Tsitsipas under heavy scrutiny after he took a seven-minute break during his match with Andy Murray.

That was the match that inspired this tweet by Murray:

Fact of the day. It takes Stefanos Tsitipas twice as long to go the bathroom as it takes Jeff Bazos to fly into space. Interesting. 🚽 🚀

— Andy Murray (@andy_murray) August 31, 2021

“It's just disappointing because I feel it influenced the outcome of the match,” Murray would later say, when talking about Tsitsipas bathroom break (plus other injury timeouts that were taken during the match). "I'm not saying I necessarily win that match, for sure, but it had influence on what was happening after those breaks.

“I rate him a lot. I think he's a brilliant player. I think he's great for the game. But I have zero time for that stuff at all, and I lost respect for him.”

The incident caused a lot of debate and the ATP has clearly taken that into account when making new rules. They are as follows (per ATP):

Toilet Break & Change of Attire (Effective 2022)

• Players can take a maximum of three minutes once they have entered the toilet.
• Players will receive two minutes for a change of attire in addition to the three-minute toilet break.
• Note: Change of attire may only be done in conjunction with a toilet break (unless authorised by the Chair Umpire).
• A player may only take one toilet break per match.
• Toilet breaks can only be taken during a set break.
• Time violations will apply if a player is not ready within the allowed time.

The ATP will also introduce new rules on medical timeouts, but the tour stated that they are not sure when the rules will come into effect.

Medical Time Out (Effective Date TBD)

• One three-minute time out per match to be taken during a changeover or a set break only.
• If the player cannot continue to the next change of ends, he will forfeit the points required to get to that change of ends/set break.

A look at the WTA's year-end 2021 rankings… By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Monday November 22, 2021

The WTA’s year-end rankings feature several historical milestones, with Tunisia, Greece and Estonia represented in the Top-10 for the first time and six teenagers inside the Top-100.

Overall 35 countries and regions are represented in the singles year-end Top 100, and there were ten players who finished in the Top-50 in singles and doubles – Elise Mertens (4 and 21), Barbora Krejcikova (2 and 5), Katerina Siniakova (1 and 49), Aryna Sabalenka (2 and 28), Veronika Kudermetova (31 and 21), Jelena Ostapenka (28 and 23), Iga Swiatek (41 and 9), Elena Rybakina (49 and 14), Jessica Pegula (50 and 18) and Coco Gauff (22 and 21).

Here are some other ranking highlights, via our notes and a press released from the WTA:

For the third consecutive year, Ash Barty finishes the year at No.1, joining Stefanie Graf, Martina Navratilova, Serena Williams and Chris Evert as the only players to finish as year-end No.1 for three consecutive years. The Aussie has held the No.1 ranking for 109 weeks in total, eighth best all-time.

The 2021 year-end rankings are out! 🤩

From the record-setters in the Top 10 to the fastest climbers in the Top 100, we break them down here ⬇️

— wta (@WTA) November 18, 2021

23-year-old Belarusian Aryna Sabalanka earns a Top-2 finish for the first time and becomes the 33rd different woman to finish the year in the Top 2 since the rankings were introduced in 1975. She finished 2020 at No.10.

Garbiñe Muguruza rises to No.3 in the WTA’s year-end ranking – her best finish since 2017.

Karolina Pliskova earns her sixth consecutive Top 10 finish, which is the longest active streak. For the first time since 1986, there are two women representing the Czech Republic ranked in the year-end Top 5 as Pliskova finishes at No.4 and Barbora Krejcikova at No.5. In 1986, Hana Mandlikova finished at No.4 and Helena Sukova at No.5.

Krejcikova’s previous-best year-end ranking was No.65 (2020). She is the only woman to finish the year in the Top 5 in singles (at No.5) and doubles (at No.2).

Maria Sakkari sits at a career-high No.6 at year-end. The first Greek woman to finish the year in the Top 10, Sakkari has improved her year-end ranking for the 11th consecutive year, after reaching two Grand Slam semifinals in 2021.

Anett Kontaveit, winner of 29 of her final 33 matches, ranks at No.7 and posts the highest year-end finish by an Estonian.

Paula Badosa of Spain, who finished last year at No.70 in the WTA rankings, joins Muguruza in the Top-10 at No.8. For the first time since 2000, Spain has two women in the year-end Top 10 as Badosa joins Muguruza. In 2000, Conchita Martinez (No.5) and Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario (No.9) both finished in the Top 10.

Iga Swiatek locks down her first year-end Top-10 finish. The 20-year-old becomes the second Polish woman to finish the year in the Top 10, joining Agnieszka Radwanska, who finished in the year-end Top 10 eight times.

The Top-10 is rounded out by Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur. She becomes the first Arab woman to finish in the Top 10 at No.10 after climbing as high as No.7 on November 1.

Teenagers inside the Top-100:

No.19 Emma Raducanu
No. 22 Coco Gauff
No. 24 Leylah Fernandez
No. 44 Clara Tauson
No. 50 Marta Kostyuk
No. 55 Maria Camila Osoria Serrano

Serena Williams drops to 41, her lowest year-end ranking since 2006, when she was 95 in the world.

Venus Williams drops to 312, her first time outside of the Top-100 since 2011 (103).

Simona Halep drops to 20, her first non Top-10 finish since 2012 (47).

Ana Konjuh finishes at 66, up from 538 at year-end 2020, and 1270 at year-end 2019.

Two players inside the Top-10 rose over 60 ranking spots during the course of the 2021 season – Barbora Krejcikova (+60 from 65 to 5) and Paula Badosa (+62 from 70 to 8). Six players recorded their maiden Top-10 year-end finish – No.5 Krejcikova, No.6 Sakkari, No.7 Kontaveit, No.8 Badosa, No.9 Swiatek, No.10 Jabeur.

Two more recorded their first Top-20 year-end finish: No.18 Pegula and No.19 Raducanu.