World No.13 Elina Svitolina was the latest tennis star to be subjected to online abuse after her Canadian Open quarter-final defeat on Tuesday.
The 30-year-old was comfortably beaten by Naomi Osaka and later took to social media to highlight the abuse directed at her, which included death threats.
“To all the bettors: I’m a mom before I’m an athlete,” Svitolina wrote in an Instagram story above screenshots of the abuse she received.
“The way you talk to women – to mothers – is SHAMEFUL. If your moms saw your messages, they’d be disgusted.”
The Ukrainian also received messages that referenced the ongoing war in her country.
Abuse of tennis players by bettors is common
A report from the Women’s Tennis Association [WTA] and International Tennis Federation [ITF] published in June revealed that 458 players were direct targets of abuse.
A stunning number considering the limited number of players who are regularly on the main circuit of the tennis tour.
Much of the abuse comes from betting, according to data science firm Signify, which has been working with tennis authorities on detecting abuse through an artificial intelligence-led detection system called Threat Matrix.
The figures provided on behalf of the WTA and ITF, show that in 2024, about 8,000 abusive, violent or threatening messages were sent publicly to these 458 tennis players.
The report also adds that gamblers sent 40% of all detected abuse with messages related to betting activity.
Before Wimbledon earlier this year, current British No.2 Katie Boutler told the BBC that she is regularly targeted by online abusers who have sent her death threats and explicit pictures.
Boulter also believes much of this abuse comes from gamblers who have lost money.
Elina Svitolina shared the abuse she received on InstagramGETTY Elina Svitolina’s attention will now turn to the Cincinnati Open@elisvitolina“At the very start of my career, it’s probably something I took very personally… getting comments about the way you look,” Boulter said.
“It becomes more apparent every single time you go on your phone.
“I think it increases in number and it also increases in the level of things that people say. I don’t think there’s anything off the cards now.
“I think it just kind of shows how vulnerable we are,” Boulter says. “You really don’t know if this person is on site. You really don’t know if they’re nearby or if they know where you live or anything like that.”
Other players, like teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva are among those who have also shared online abuse.
In a deleted Instagram post, she shared an image of the many comments that had been directed at her and captioned the post: “And this is what you get when you lose 1 match.”
Naomi Osaka has enjoyed a strong tournament in MontrealGETTYFor Svitolina, her attention will now turn to the Cincinnati Open, where she will hope to replicate a strong run as she did in Montreal.
Meanwhile, for Osaka, she is now two wins away from her first WTA title in four years after her 6-2 6-2 victory.
“I think for me, I’m just having a lot of fun playing and I’m really glad to be here,” Osaka said post-match in Montreal.
“Someone told me it’s been seven years [since I’ve played here in Montreal]”
For a place in the final, Osaka will face Danish 16th seed Clara Tauson, who is enjoying a thrilling run, having beaten Wimbledon champion Iga Swiatek and Australian Open champion Madison Keys in Canada.
The other semifinal will feature Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko and former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina.
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