The Argentine tennis player Román Burruchaga was the victim of telephone threats before his match against Taiwanese player Chun Hsin Tseng in the semi-final of the Challenger 125 in Rosario. According to the Argentine News Agency, the 24-year-old athlete was threatened by a foreign and unknown number. The messages contained direct threats such as: "We are in Rosario and we have photos of where you are right now," "We know where your dad is, and we have your mom located," and "We promise you won't leave Rosario." This unfortunate incident comes after Spanish player Nicolás Sánchez Izquierdo reported a few days ago that he had received a message with the address of his home in Spain and left the country immediately after his defeat in the round of 16. In an era where sports betting is becoming increasingly prominent, Burruchaga was threatened with harm to him and his family if he did not lose to Chun Hsin Tseng. The messages were received yesterday at 5:00 PM while the player was leaving the hotel where the athletes are staying to head to the Rosario Jockey Club. The aggressor's phone number was foreign, with the +44 prefix corresponding to the United Kingdom, and they contacted the player directly through the WhatsApp messaging app with the threat: "You have to lose to the Chinese today," referring to his opponent, who was born in Taiwan. "Look well, you son of a bitch," the violent message begins, "we are in Rosario and we have photos of where you are right now in our entire territory," in addition to threatening his family's life: "We will send your dad, full of money, to 'la verde' in Buenos Aires if you don't comply, just like your mom," also giving his mother's name and informing that they have both located, as well as their cell phones. Another message states they have "fierros" (firearms), "enough to give you and your family full of gold," "comply well without winning a single set and everything will stay here," and after threatening not to leave the Rosario city, the text closes with the phrase: "Don't be an idiot, value your life and shut up," asking him not to alert the security forces. They also sent a photo of a hand holding a pistol. According to the player's subsequent statements to the authorities, the personal data of the relatives mentioned are real, so the operation began immediately: custody for the player, a reinforcement of patrols in the perimeter of the club, presence of police officers on the sides of the court, and continuous 24-hour surveillance for "Burru." The operation was different from the one taken in the case of Sánchez Izquierdo, for whom they postponed the match for almost two hours and had him play without an audience, with police blocking access to court 1 and redirecting spectators to the central court.
