Katie Boulter opens up over level of online abuse sent to tennis players

British number two Katie Boulter has lifted the lid on the level of abuse aimed at some tennis players and revealed she and her family have received death threats.

Boulter shared her experiences with BBC Sport to highlight the issue of players receiving toxic messages online.

The 28-year-old’s examples included a message 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”, one stating she should “go to hell” as she had cost the poster money, and another stating “hope you get cancer”.

Boulter said: “I just wonder who the person is that has sent that. 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.”

Boulter believes much of the abuse comes from gamblers who have lost money and, while she has learned how to better handle it over the years, incidents can raise genuine concerns for her safety.

She said: “I think 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.”

The message Boulter received relating to her family came during her French Open first-round victory over Carole Monnet on May 29.

And she is concerned that both the frequency and severity of the abuse is increasing and worries about the potential impact on younger players.

She said: “I think it increases in number and it also increases in the level of things that people say. I don’t think there’s anything off the cards now.”

Boulter’s compatriot Jack Draper said it was “so easy to spread online hate”.

Speaking after his opening match of the HSBC Championships at Queen’s Club, he said: “It’s not easy, especially, I think she (Boulter) said, when you’re younger and you lose a match or something and you come into the professional tour 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.

“There does need to be something that gets done, not just in tennis but in professional sport. It’s too easy to spread hate. I’m not a fan of social media at all.”

Boulter’s fiance, Australian player Alex de Minaur, said: “It’s great for her to step up and shine a light into this and hopefully there is something that can be done about it.”

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. Today’s report covering the first year of the Threat Matrix service shows the scale of the problem and, crucially, the actions being taken to protect our athletes.

“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.”