Teen tennis star Oliver Anderson’s career on line in fixing charge

Teen tennis star Oliver ­Anderson has been charged with alleged match fixing at a tournament in regional Victoria.

Oliver Anderson winning the junior open last year. Picture: Michael Klein

Not quite a year after Oliver ­Anderson claimed the Australian Open boys singles title, his career is in peril after he was charged with alleged match fixing at a tournament in regional Victoria.

The 18-year-old, from Brisbane, was a success story in what was a tarnished summer, with the Australian Open plagued by allegations tennis authorities around the globe had deliberately ignored evidence linking past and present top 50 players to corruption.

The Queenslander qualified for his first ATP Tour event, the Brisbane International in his home town, and then proceeded to defeat the world’s best juniors to win the Australian crown. That earned him an invitation to join the Davis Cup squad for a tie at Kooyong against the US as an ­“orange boy”, a role reserved for promising talents who might one day represent the nation.

That future is in question after Victoria Police detectives charged him on summons for engaging in conduct that corrupts a betting outcome at a tournament in Traralgon in October.

Assistant commissioner Neil Paterson said detectives from the Sporting Integrity Intelligence Unit and bookmakers assisted the investigation into the alleged match fixing. “Match fixing is one of the fastest growing organised crime types across the world at the present time,” he said.

Neither Victoria Police nor Tennis Australia, whose integrity unit provided assistance to detectives during the investigation, would confirm Anderson is the player charged.

The charged man will appear at the Latrobe Valley Magistrates’ Court on March 2, police said.

A wildcard entrant in the ­second-tier tournament in Traralgon in October, he defeated the 1624th ranked Harrison Lombe in the first round 4-6 6-0 6-2. Fellow Queenslander John-Patrick Smith thrashed him 6-2 6-1 in his next match.

Industry figures were surprised when asked about Anderson yesterday, saying he presented as shy, mild-mannered teenager. But a source told The Australian the 18-year-old had recently been considering retirement. He has not played a match since the loss to Smith in Traralgon.

A report last month said Anderson, who peaked at a career-high 639 and has earned $28,356 in prize money, was battling a hip problem. This helped explain his absence from the Australian Open wildcard tournament and also from any discussion in regards to playing this month. His deeds last summer would certainly have seen him in line to receive wildcards, either into the main draw or qualifying, at events down the eastern coast.

TA’s head of integrity Ann West said the arrest served as a warning for any athlete considering corrupting a sporting event. “Always, if something like this happens, it is disappointing to confront as a sport,” she said.

“It does not matter which sport it is and what we are trying to do is minimise the risk.”

She said any players considering this sort of behaviour put their careers and reputation at risk.

Former professional Nick Lindahl was convicted and fined in a NSW court last April of match-fixing offences related to a match in Toowoomba in 2013. He is ­provisionally suspended pending an investigation by the International Tennis Federation’s integrity unit.

After last summer’s allegations, TA and other tennis bodies around the globe instituted an independent review into the sport’s handling of integrity issues. Headed by Londoner Adam Lewis QC, an interim report is due to be ­released in March and TA has promised to undertake its recommendations.

The integrity unit headed by Ms West has already been ­bolstered ahead of the review. Rhys Harrison, who worked for the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation, and ex-Northern Territory policeman Peter Peterson have joined TA as integrity ­officers.

Mr Peterson yesterday confirmed an integrity officer was on site for the Traralgon event and the unit is planning to be visible at all Tennis Australia sanctioned events.