Nine tennis players including US Open star have been handed lifetime bans from the sport
There have been a raft of lifetime bans issued in the sport of tennis, with seven umpires handed the strictest punishment for their offences.
For Wimbledon, one of the most historic and lucrative tournaments, 20 players have been hit with bans but the amount of stars to have been permanently suspended from tennis is a little less.
A total of nine have been banned for life due to a number of different reasons, including one star who featured in the US Open tournament and was beaten by eventual winner Juan Martín del Potro in 2019.
Current men's world No.1 Jannik Sinner received a three-month suspension for a positive test for the banned anabolic steroid clostebol, while Iga Swiatek, winner of the Ladies' Wimbledon final, also tested positive for a banned substance and was suspended for one month.
Advert
But no player has ever been banned for life for doping purposes, with the majority of suspensions issued for match fixing and corruption.
Daniel Kollerer
In 2011, Austrian Koller was banned for life after being found guilty of match-fixing. He had competed at Wimbledon, the US Open, the French Open and Australian Open and was ranked No.55 in the world at one stage.
The ban was upheld when Koller appealed to the Court Arbitration of Sport, but his $100,000 fine was overturned.
Alexandros Jakupovic
A few years later, Jakupovic joined Kollerer being banned for life when found guilty of five corruption charges by the Tennis Integrity Unit. Details of how the Greek broke rules were not released
Karim Hossam and Youssef Hossam
The pair of brothers were both banned for life in a period which spanned less than two years. In July 2018, Karim was banned for life and fined $15,000 for 16 corruption charges which occurred between 2013 to 2017 at ITF Futures tournaments.
Younger brother Youssef was banned in 2020, having been found guilty of 21 match-fixing and corruption breaches between 2015 to 2019.
He had failed to co-operate with an investigation with the Tennis Integrity Unit, who said he was "permanently excluded from competing in or attending any sanctioned tennis event organised or recognised by the governing bodies of the sport".
Diego Matos
A member of the ATP Tour, Diego Matos was banned for life following match-fixing charges in September 2019. The Brazilian's last game was a doubles final win alongside Sadio Doumbia in December 2018 in Yaounde, Cameroon for an ITF tournament.
Nastja Kolar and Alexandra Riley
In June 2023, the International Tennis Integrity Agency announced both players were banned for life and fined in a match-fixing case. Kolar was found guilty of 25 breaches between 2015 to 2020 and was fined $175,000, with Riley fined the lesser amount of $50,000 for 15 offences.
The ITIA said the offences included "contriving aspects of matches, wagering, facilitating wagering, courtsiding, conspiracy, and failing to report corrupt approaches".
Alejandro Mendoza Crespo
Committing 20 major offences led to a lifetime ban and $250,000 fine for Mendoza and it was uncovered that the Bolivian had “engaged in a continuous pattern of corruption” between 2016 and 2018.
At the same time, Jorge Panta Herreros of Peru was also suspended but only for three years, with his ban due to be lifted 3 April 2027.
Alexis Musialek
Finally, in August 2023, Musialek received a lifetime ban from the ITIA for a staggering 39 breaches of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP).
The Frenchman was found to have been involved in the fixing of nine matches between 2016 and 2018 and withheld evidence, leading to a $50,000 fine.
Josh Lawless