International tennis governing bodies are launching an independent review of the sport's anti-corruption unit following recent allegations of match-fixing, officials said Wednesday.
The review panel will be headed by London-based sports lawyer Adam Lewis. He and two others will review the anti-corruption programme and make recommendations for change.
The governing bodies, including the ATP, WTA, ITF and Grand Slam Board, set up the Tennis Integrity Unit in 2008 to look into allegations of corruption in tennis worldwide.
The unit in the past has charged 18 players and officials with match-fixing and banned six of them for life. But none was from the top echelon of the sport.
Last week, the sport was rocked by allegations that tennis authorities did not pursue evidence for match-fixing in recent years. More than a dozen top-50 players were suspected of involvement in such activities.
The reputation of the sport has been damaged due to the allegations, Phillip Brook, the chairman of the Tennis Integrity Board, said in a press conference announcing the panel.
"What the events of the last few days have shown to us is that we are in a changed world," he said.
Chris Kermode, the chairman of the ATP, said it was a bold but necessary move to restore the public's confidence.
"The most important point is that we are committed to act on every recommendation," he said. "We don't want to be complacent. We want to be constantly vigilant."
"What I didn't like is that names are attached on absolutely no evidence. That is deeply unfair," he said about the revelation of some players involved in "matches with irregular betting patterns."
Suspicions of match-fixing clouded the Australian Open on Monday after an online bookmaker reported an unexpected spike in bets on a mixed doubles match, according to news reports.
Wagers poured in hours before an otherwise obscure match pitting a Spanish and a Polish pair, prompting website Pinnacle Sports to alert authorities in Melbourne where the match was being held.
In a separate case, Nick Lukas Lindahl, 27, a former Australian tennis professional, told a local court in Australia on Monday that he would plead guilty to throwing a match in 2013 to allow friends and contacts to win thousands of dollars.
