Maikel Villalona, a 21-year-old tennis player from the Dominican Republic, has been sanctioned for four years and six months under the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP). The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) confirmed that Villalona was charged two months ago and effectively admitted liability, accepting the suspension.

On October 15, Villalona was charged with five breaches of the TACP, with four of those relating to an ITF World Tennis Tour doubles match played in 2022, including two counts of contriving the outcome, receipt of money, and failure to report a corrupt approach. He was also charged with failure to cooperate with an ITIA investigation.

Villalona did not engage with five separate requests to attend an interview at the beginning of this year and the unranked player failed to respond to the charges against them.

In doing so, Villalona effectively accepted liability for the charges and agreed to their suspension of four years and six months, in addition to a fine of £7,400.

They had 10 days to appeal the sanction but elected not to do so before the deadline.

Villalona is now banned from playing in, coaching at, or attending any tennis event authorised or sanctioned by the members of the ITIA (ATP, ITF, WTA, Tennis Australia, Federation Francaise de Tennis, Wimbledon and USTA) or any national association.

Just four days earlier, another player was banned for breaches of the TACP.

Chinese star Pang Renlong was suspended for 12 years and fined £81k, of which £51k is suspended, after fixing or attempting to fix 22 matches last year.

The 25-year-old former world No. 1316 admitted to fixing five of their own singles matches at ITF World Tennis Tour M15, M25, and ATP Challenger 50 levels, as well as making 17 corrupt approaches to other professionals, resulting in six further matches being fixed.

Pang’s suspension will end on November 6, 2036, subject to the repayment of outstanding fines. They waived the right to a hearing before an independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer.