Italian player gets life ban for tennis match-fixing

Former top-50 player Daniele Bracciali has been banned from tennis for life after the Tennis Integrity Unit found him guilty of match-fixing.
His fellow Italian, Potito Starace, who has retired, has been given a 10-year suspension for a similar offence.
Both players were also fined – Bracciali $250,000 (£195,500) and Starace $100,000 (£78,200).
They will both have the right of appeal through the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The TIU says both players were found guilty of two breaches of anti-corruption rules – one in relation to contriving the outcome of matches, and the other in connection with facilitating betting on matches.
The incidents occurred at the ATP 500 World Tour tournament event in Barcelona, Spain in April 2011.
Bracciali, 40, is ranked 100th in doubles and reached a career-best of 21 in June 2012. As a singles player, his highest ranking was 49 in May 2006.
Starace, 37, retired earlier this year with a career-best singles ranking of 27 in October 2007. His highest doubles ranking was 40 in June 2012.
He is prohibited from attending any sanctioned events organised or recognised by the governing bodies of the sport.
Both players were banned for life by the Italian Tennis Federation in 2015 but Starace’s ban was later overturned and Bracciali’s reduced to a year because the appeal panel said the evidence was not strong enough. (BBC Sport)