A robust probe into Wimbledon row can reassure fans

All England Tennis Club in Wimbledon, southwest London. Pic/AFP

A shadow has fallen on the hallowed green turf of Wimbledon. Two matches at this year's Wimbledon are being investigated by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) over potential irregular betting patterns, reports said.

The ITIA has received an alert. The first suspicious match is a men's doubles match in the first round. Another is a first-round singles match. Investigations are ongoing and one can certainly not shout fixed at this stage.

This is not also the first time that tennis matches have come under the scanner, but the spotlight shines brighter because this is a Grand Slam and this is Wimbledon. It is also better to hold one's horses and not jump to conclusions.

One can hope that these matches were clean. Speaking specifically through an Indian perspective, cricket has never really recovered after the fixing controversy which broke Indian hearts. Hansie Cronje, Mohammad Azharuddin, Manoj Prabhakar… so on and so forth. Once the scandal broke it enveloped the cricket world and took with it the trust of hundreds of fans.

This is not to say that there was no revival. Cricket matches are on, money-spinning premier leagues have caught the imagination of what some say is a whole new demographic watching the game. That is the truth, but one cannot ignore the fact that faith has been very difficult if not impossible to rebuild.

You have one surprising result or a shocker and one can figuratively see the big question marks hanging up there, in the sky. It is hugely unfortunate that clean games, clean players and administrators are tarnished with the same brush.

The tennis scandal needs an outcome and an end. Robust investigation and transparency plus an absolute will to stamp out any corruption is the only way to keep the fans and ensure the game goes on in the right spirit.