British number two Katie Boulter has received a “really warm response” and “a lot of love” after revealing the scale of abuse aimed at her online.
The 28-year-old shared her experiences, which included death threats, with BBC Sport to highlight the issue of players encountering toxic messages on social media.
Examples of the abuse included someone telling her to buy “candles and a coffin for your entire family” with a reference to her “grandmother’s grave if she’s not dead by tomorrow” and one stating she should “go to hell” as she had cost the poster money.
Since her interview aired, Boulter has been inundated with support.
“I looked on my phone this morning and literally there were hundreds of messages of people reacting to it and every single person was just telling me to disregard it and how much they love me and appreciate me bringing this subject into light,” she said following victory over Lulu Sun in the first round of the Lexus Nottingham Open.
“It was a really warm response to it coming out and it was very nice to see.
“It’s very rare that I go on it (social media) loads but I do notice things here and there and I felt a lot of love from it.”
Boulter believes much of the abuse comes from gamblers who have lost money and feels incidents can raise genuine concerns for her safety.
One message stated “hope you get cancer”.
“I just wonder who the person is that has sent that,” she said in her BBC interview. “I don’t think it’s something that I would ever say to my worst enemy. It’s just an awful, awful thing to say to anyone. It’s horrible.
“It just kind of shows how vulnerable we are. You really don’t know if this person is on site. You really don’t know if they’re nearby or if they know where you live or anything like that.”
Boulter’s compatriot Jack Draper said it was “so easy to spread online hate”, while her fiance, Australian player Alex de Minaur, also offered support.
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Speaking after his opening match of the HSBC Championships at Queen’s Club, Draper said: “It’s not easy, especially, I think she (Boulter) said, when you’re younger and getting all this abuse, saying they will come around your house and do this and that. It’s not nice.
“But, at the same time, I take comfort in knowing whoever’s doing that is probably sat on their mum’s couch, nailing a bag of Quavers with their pants on.”
The WTA and International Tennis Federation on Tuesday published their first report into online abuse of players after the launch of the Threat Matrix service last January.
The system operates across all major social media platforms and uses AI and human analysts to identify and tackle harassment, abuse and threats directed at players.
The report reveals 1.6million posts and comments were analysed, with around 8,000 directed at 458 players identified as abusive, violent or threatening.
Five players received 26 per cent of the total abuse, while 40 per cent of the messages were identified as coming from angry gamblers.
Fifteen accounts have been identified to law enforcement because of the serious and prolific nature of the messages, while details have been shared with security teams at tennis events to prevent individuals accessing venues.
A spokesperson for the WTA and ITF said: “Protecting players and the wider tennis family from vile online threat and abuse is a key priority for us.
“Given the clear evidence highlighted by Threat Matrix on the link between angry gamblers and prolific online abuse and threat, we are calling for a constructive dialogue with the gambling industry to help tackle this issue.
“Everyone – betting operators, social media platforms, governing bodies, players and law enforcers – has a responsibility to make the online space a safer and more positive one. We hope the gambling industry responds constructively to our call for more action on their part.”
In response, a Betting and Gaming Council spokesperson told the PA news agency: “BGC members do not tolerate abuse on social media, which has no place in betting or sport.”
Boulter was praised for highlighting the issue by the FIA’s United Against Online Abuse campaign, a research-led coalition dedicated to tackling online abuse in sport.
A spokesperson said: “Katie is incredibly brave for speaking out about the appalling online abuse and threats she has faced.
“Betting-related abuse has risen significantly in recent years and now presents a serious and growing threat to the safety, well-being and mental health of athletes.”
