Australia's tennis association "will increase prize money and has employed additional full-time investigators in an attempt to stamp out corruption," according to the BBC. A "raft of new security measures" have been introduced for the Australian Open and warm-up events in January. Tennis Australia said there is "no evidence of widespread corruption." A BBC and BuzzFeed News investigation in January "uncovered suspected illegal betting, with 16 players reportedly flagged over suspicious matches." Tennis Australia has now announced a number of measures "designed to safeguard the integrity of the upcoming summer of tennis," with its own National Integrity Unit "boosted" by an information and intelligence officer and a safety and risk manager. Prize money will also be increased at the "lower levels" of the sport, including qualifying and early rounds of the Australian Open, in "an attempt to help those more vulnerable to corruption." Other steps include "enhanced education for players and staff, increased security during tournaments, and extending the block on access to gambling websites from Tennis Australia tournaments" (BBC, 12/9).
