David Savic Receives Lifetime Ban From ATP For Match Fixing

On Saturday, the Tennis Integrity Unit found ATP tour player David Savic guilty for match fixing.

The 659th-ranked Serbian was fined $100,000 for three violations in tennis’ international anti-corruption program.

He is only the second player in the history of the sport to be banned for life. Former World No. 55 Daniel Koellerer, a 27-year-old Australian, was the first. Koellerer was found guilty of match fixing in May 2011. Koellerer was also fined $100,000 and was looking into appealing his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

Koellerer’s manager at the time said the following about Koellerer’s possible appeal: “He isn’t sure if he can afford the legal costs. He is going to become a father in July. It is very difficult.”

The offenses Savic was found guilty of happened in October 2010. The 26-year-old’s ban from tennis became effective immediately.

On Tuesday, Savic still denied the accusations and said he would be filing an appeal with CAS. In a written statement, Savic wrote he was set up by a “current top player.”

“That is an absolute lie,” Savic said. “I was obviously chosen as a scapegoat. Without any concrete evidence, I became a drastic example for other players.”