New Jersey suspends betting on Ukrainian table tennis due to match-fixing concerns

Concerns of potential match-fixing on Ukrainian table tennis events prompted the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement to tell sportsbooks in the state to suspend betting on the sport. 

According to a notice sent to sportsbooks obtained by ESPN, the Sports Wagering Integrity Monitoring Association alerted New Jersey regulators July 7. The notice said to avoid all bets on table tennis events in Ukraine or any matches involving six specific players – Liliia Zaitseva, Ivan Gaysin, Karen Dzhanibekyan, Eduard Panichev, Anastasia Efimova and Gleb Zotov. 

The notice reads: "While there is not yet any evidence that any match fixing occurred in New Jersey, due the nature of the alert, the Division is suspending approval for wagering on all table tennis events in the Ukraine, including but not limited to the Setka Cup, WIN Cup, and TT Cup." 

Betting on table tennis has become more popular in the United States while most major sports are on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to ESPN, which says hundreds of thousands of dollars are being wagered each day.

The news in New Jersey comes after the Indiana Gaming Commission suspended betting on any table tennis events not sanctioned by the sport's top governing bodies following an ESPN report in May.

Back in late March, the Ukrainian Tennis Table Federation disqualified 365 players for competing in Setka Cup matches during the pandemic.