Overview

• Svitolina shared screenshots of death threats and misogynistic, war-referencing slurs allegedly sent by angry bettors after her straight-sets loss to Naomi Osaka at the Montreal quarter-finals
• The WTA and ITF Threat Matrix report logged over 8,000 abusive messages aimed at 458 players in 2024, attributing roughly 40 percent of the insults to sports gamblers
• Fellow players Caroline Garcia, Katie Boulter and Jessica Pegula have detailed similar betting-driven harassment, highlighting the ongoing mental health risks for athletes
• Tennis authorities and tournament organizers have begun piloting AI-based filtering tools to detect and block abusive content, though these systems remain in early development
• Svitolina’s public outcry has renewed calls for social media platforms and bookmakers to adopt binding policies that identify, discipline and deter online abusers