French tennis player sees match-fixing ban extended to three years after appeal

A French tennis player has seen his ban from the sport for match-fixing extended to three years following an appeal, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) confirmed on Wednesday.

>Samuel Bensoussan, 34, had initially received a ban of one year and 11 months for his involvement in fixing singles and doubles matches in lower-tier tournaments.

>These illicit activities were carried out on behalf of an organised crime syndicate based in Belgium.

>The Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) increased the ban, noting that investigations had "uncovered a criminal organization that corrupted at least 181 players worldwide and involved the manipulation of at least 375 tennis matches."

>The leader of this syndicate was previously sentenced to five years in prison in a Belgian criminal case.

>Bensoussan's career high ranking was World No 405 in June 2018.

>Bensoussan had appealed to Cas to overturn his original sanction, while the ITIA had sought a longer ban of six-and-a-half years.

>The three Cas judges, however, declined to order Bensoussan to repay the €1,000 (£850) that tennis investigators claimed he received for fixing a match in 2018.