Andy Murray signs autographs after winning his first round match against Germany's Alexander Zverev at the Australian Open tennis tournament at Melbourne Park, Australia, January 19, 2016. REUTERS/Jason Reed
Andy Murray signs autographs after winning his first round match against Germany's Alexander Zverev at the Australian Open tennis tournament at Melbourne Park, Australia, January 19, 2016. REUTERS/JasShow more

Tennis match-fixing claims: World No 2 Andy Murray urges transparency ‘We deserve to know’



Melbourne // Andy Murray Tuesday urged tennis authorities to be proactive in the fight against corruption after match-fixing claims hit the sport – and blasted a betting company’s sponsorship of the Australian Open.

After the BBC and BuzzFeed reported top players, including Grand Slam title-winners, were suspected of match-fixing but never punished, Murray said the fight against corruption must be transparent.

"If there is corruption in any sport, you know, you want to hear about it," said the world No 2, after beating Alexander Zverev in the Australian Open first round.

“As a player you just want to be made aware of everything that’s going on. I think we deserve to know everything that’s sort of out there,” he added.

“Some of it will be true, some of it might not be true. But I’m always very curious with that stuff across really all sports, as well. I think sports could in general be much, much more transparent.”

Tennis officials reacted angrily to the report, refuting any suggestion of a cover-up and criticising its release just before the start of the season’s first Grand Slam.

Video: Match-fixing reports lobbed at world tennis

But Murray said players should not have to read about the match-fixing claims in the media, and that tennis authorities should be more open about the situation with their participants.

“I just think that it should be tennis that does a better job of explaining -- they (players) shouldn’t have to read it in the press,” Murray told reporters.

“You have to be proactive I think with things like this and go and speak to the players rather than them reading about it in the newspapers or listening to it on the TV or the radio.

“I think the more proactive you are with educating young players, the better on matters like this.”

Murray said, unlike world number Novak Djokovic who was targeted earlier in his career, he had never been approached to fix a match.

Read more: Novak Djokovic says he was offered $200,000 to fix match

Murray also took aim at organisers for allowing a betting company to sponsor this year’s Australian Open, a move which has already provoked criticism.

“I think it’s a little bit hypocritical, really,” he said. “I don’t believe the players are allowed to be sponsored by betting companies but then the tournaments are.

“I don’t really understand how it all works. I think it’s a bit strange.”

Other players have also detailed approaches and according to Australian media, police are closely watching the first round of the Australian Open for suspicious results.

The controversy is just the latest to hit the sports world, after allegations of doping cover-ups rocked athletics and football body FIFA was engulfed by a string of corruption scandals.

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The specs

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Power: 480kW

Torque: 850Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

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How to join and use Abu Dhabi’s public libraries

• There are six libraries in Abu Dhabi emirate run by the Department of Culture and Tourism, including one in Al Ain and Al Dhafra.

• Libraries are free to visit and visitors can consult books, use online resources and study there. Most are open from 8am to 8pm on weekdays, closed on Fridays and have variable hours on Saturdays, except for Qasr Al Watan which is open from 10am to 8pm every day.

• In order to borrow books, visitors must join the service by providing a passport photograph, Emirates ID and a refundable deposit of Dh400. Members can borrow five books for three weeks, all of which are renewable up to two times online.

• If users do not wish to pay the fee, they can still use the library’s electronic resources for free by simply registering on the website. Once registered, a username and password is provided, allowing remote access.

• For more information visit the library network's website.

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Chelsea
 Morata (69'), Luiz (88')
Burnley Vokes (24', 43'), Ward (39')
Red cards Cahill, Fabregas (Chelsea)

Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode

Directors: Raj & DK

Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon

Rating: 4/5

WWE Super ShowDown results

Seth Rollins beat Baron Corbin to retain his WWE Universal title

Finn Balor defeated Andrade to stay WWE Intercontinental Championship

Shane McMahon defeated Roman Reigns

Lars Sullivan won by disqualification against Lucha House Party

Randy Orton beats Triple H

Braun Strowman beats Bobby Lashley

Kofi Kingston wins against Dolph Zigggler to retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship

Mansoor Al Shehail won the 50-man Battle Royal

The Undertaker beat Goldberg

 

SPECS

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Singham Again

Director: Rohit Shetty

Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone

Rating: 3/5

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Name: Qyubic
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Cultural fiesta

What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421,  Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day. 

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League quarter-final, second leg (first-leg score)

Porto (0) v Liverpool (2), Wednesday, 11pm UAE

Match is on BeIN Sports

The Energy Research Centre

Founded 50 years ago as a nuclear research institute, scientists at the centre believed nuclear would be the “solution for everything”.
Although they still do, they discovered in 1955 that the Netherlands had a lot of natural gas. “We still had the idea that, by 2000, it would all be nuclear,” said Harm Jeeninga, director of business and programme development at the centre.
"In the 1990s, we found out about global warming so we focused on energy savings and tackling the greenhouse gas effect.”
The energy centre’s research focuses on biomass, energy efficiency, the environment, wind and solar, as well as energy engineering and socio-economic research.

Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

Top tips

Create and maintain a strong bond between yourself and your child, through sensitivity, responsiveness, touch, talk and play. “The bond you have with your kids is the blueprint for the relationships they will have later on in life,” says Dr Sarah Rasmi, a psychologist.
Set a good example. Practise what you preach, so if you want to raise kind children, they need to see you being kind and hear you explaining to them what kindness is. So, “narrate your behaviour”.
Praise the positive rather than focusing on the negative. Catch them when they’re being good and acknowledge it.
Show empathy towards your child’s needs as well as your own. Take care of yourself so that you can be calm, loving and respectful, rather than angry and frustrated.
Be open to communication, goal-setting and problem-solving, says Dr Thoraiya Kanafani. “It is important to recognise that there is a fine line between positive parenting and becoming parents who overanalyse their children and provide more emotional context than what is in the child’s emotional development to understand.”
 


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