Alexandr Dolgopolov match under investigation over betting patterns

The Tennis Integrity Unit has confirmed it is investigating Sunday’s ATP Tour match between Alexandr Dolgopolov and Thiago Monteiro after several bookmakers suspended their markets in response to suspicious betting patterns.

Brazilian Monteiro, who is ranked 114 in the world, took only 55 minutes to win the first round match at the Winston-Salem Open 6-3, 6-3 in a match that saw Dolgopolov fail to create a single break point. In the hours leading up to the match, large amounts of money had been placed on Monteiro that resulted in a dramatic shift in the available odds.

That led several leading bookmakers to stop taking bets, with a statement from the TIU on Monday confirming it is investigating allegations of potential match-fixing.

“The TIU was made aware of concerns over betting patterns during the match,” a spokesperson told the Times.

“As with all match alerts, the TIU will assess, make a judgment and take appropriate action on the information received through its co-operative agreements with betting operators.”

Ukrainian Dolgopolov, who is ranked 63 in the world, was once in the top 20 and reached the second round at the Cincinnati Masters last week, where he was beaten by Nick Kyrgios.

“I can confirm we suspended the match [betting] due to the suspicious moves in prices pre-match,” said a spokesperson for Ladbrokes. “This was flagged to relevant authorities right away.”

Last October, the TIU said it was examining whether a match at Wimbledon in 2016 had been fixed, while they also investigated allegations of unusual betting patterns in a match at the 2016 US Open.