The German Davis Cup team is alleging that Tommy Haas was poisoned prior to their Davis Cup semifinal match against Russia.
The International Tennis Federation is investigating the allegation, as Haas was forced to sit out the final day of play with what he thought was a stomach virus. On that day Russia won the final two singles matches to advance to the final against the U.S.
"We take this very seriously," ITF spokeswoman Barbara Travers told the AP. "The investigation starts today."
German Davis Cup teammate Alexander Waske said he was told by a Russian who manages numerous athletes that it was poisoning.
"He said as an aside, that it was bitter that Tommy Haas was poisoned," said Waske, who told the unnamed man it was just a virus. "Thereupon he said, no, they poisoned him."
Haas will reportedly have additional blood tests run to detecta poisoning.
"I'm shocked that something like that appears possible," Haas said. "When I think of how bad I felt, I can imagine it. I've been feeling weak for weeks...I was the only one ever to order dessert or a Latte macchiato after dinner [during the Davis Cup weekend]. If all this is true, since no one else got sick, that must have been when it happened."
It is more bad news for Russia, with Nikolay Davydenko under investigation for match-fixing, and the Russian mafia reportedly deep into internet tennis betting and match fixing.
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