Chinese player suspended for match fixing

LONDON – Chinese tennis player Pang Renlong has been banned for 12 years and fined $110,000 for match-fixing in which he played 22 matches in a five-month period.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency said on Friday that Pang, 25, admitted fixing five of his own matches in lower-level events and making “corrupt approaches” to players in 11 other matches, six of which were also fixed.

The match fixing took place from May to September 2024, the ITIA said. During that period, Pang played in several ITF tournaments in Turkey, Hong Kong and mainland China, losing in qualifying for one ATP Challenger event, the Jinan Open in China.

The ITIA did not list the set matches associated with Pang, whose career-high ranking last year was 1,316th. His suspension runs until 2036, including the time he has already spent under provisional suspension. Of his $110,000 fine, $70,000 was suspended.

He is prohibited from attending, coaching or participating in events organized by major tennis organizations or national federations.

Last week, the ITIA announced that French player Quentin Folliot had been banned for 20 years for match fixing and recruiting other players “on behalf of a match fixing syndicate.” He was the sixth player to be banned over allegations of involvement with the group.