Jodie Burrage Receives WTA Support After Online Abuse

Jodie Burrage received support from the WTA after she received death threats and online abuse following a first-round defeat at a tournament in India on Tuesday. Burrage shared a series of abusive messages sent to her Instagram account after her loss to India’s Vaishnavi Adkar at the Chennai Open, which ended in a score of 3-6, 6-3, 7-5. The 27-year-old stated in her Instagram post: "Nice welcome back to the tour. I remember why I left."

The WTA emphasized its commitment to player safety, stating that protecting players and the wider tennis community from online threats is a key priority. A WTA spokesperson mentioned that they have staff in Chennai providing support to Burrage, in addition to their player welfare and Threat Matrix team.

Much of the abuse players encounter comes through direct messages, prompting the WTA to offer Burrage additional support, which includes a private reporting channel for abusive direct messages and moderation to hide abusive comments on public platforms before she views them.

The Threat Matrix program is currently monitoring the abuse Burrage faced and is reporting it to social media platforms, as investigations begin to identify the individuals responsible. If any abuse is linked to betting, offenders will be included in the Bad Actor program to allow betting operators to take action against their accounts.

This incident is not isolated, as Burrage is among several players who have previously highlighted the significant level of online abuse directed at them and the ongoing inadequacies of governing bodies and social media companies in addressing it. After her first-round exit from Wimbledon in 2025, Burrage voiced her concerns on social media abuse, a sentiment shared by many of her peers.

Data from the Threat Matrix showed that female tennis players received over 12,000 abusive posts and messages in 2025. Incidents tied to disgruntled gamblers made up 42% of the verified abuse and accounted for 59% of serious cases. A report released in July revealed that 66% of severely abusive posts identified were removed, while 35 accounts linked to a dozen individuals were escalated for law enforcement attention.