British tennis star Jodie Burrage has been subjected to death threats and disturbing online abuse following her first-round defeat at the Chennai Open, renewing concerns over the growing harassment of professional athletes on social media.
The 27-year-old received the abusive messages after losing 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 to India’s Vaishnavi Adkar on Tuesday, November 3, in what was her first WTA Tour main-draw singles appearance in 16 months.
Burrage appeared to be heading towards a successful return to the professional circuit after taking the opening set 6-3. However, Adkar responded strongly, winning the second set by the same scoreline to force a decider.
The British player subsequently found herself in a promising position in the final set, taking a 5-3 lead and moving within reach of victory. However, the home favourite produced an impressive fightback, winning four consecutive games to complete a remarkable comeback and secure her place in the next round.
The defeat was particularly disappointing for Burrage, who had been away from WTA Tour main-draw singles competition since her first-round appearance at Wimbledon in July 2025.
However, the disappointment of losing was followed by something far more disturbing when the British player checked her social media accounts and discovered a series of abusive messages, including death threats.
Taking to her Instagram story, Burrage shared a video showing some of the direct messages she had received after the match. Expressing her frustration over the treatment, she wrote: “Nice welcome back to tour. I remember why I left.”
Her reaction reflected the emotional toll that online harassment has continued to take on professional tennis players, particularly those who receive personal attacks following disappointing results.
The incident quickly attracted attention from other players, with German tennis star Eva Lys publicly expressing solidarity with Burrage and questioning the lack of effective measures to address the problem.
Tagging the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) in her Instagram response, Lys asked: “When will something be done?”
Her intervention has further intensified calls for tennis authorities and social media companies to introduce stronger protections for athletes against threatening messages and online harassment.
For Burrage, however, the incident is not entirely new. The British player previously spoke about the abuse she receives online, particularly following defeats, and called on gambling companies and social media platforms to take greater responsibility for tackling online trolls.
Following her first-round defeat to American Catherine McNally at Wimbledon in July 2025, Burrage disclosed that she had sometimes struggled to resist checking her phone because of the abusive messages directed at her.
She also questioned why social media companies could not introduce identity verification systems that would make users more accountable for their activities online.
Burrage suggested that some of the abuse appeared to come from frustrated gamblers who had lost money on tennis matches, although she acknowledged that she could not establish the identity of everyone sending the messages.
The issue has become increasingly concerning across professional tennis, where players are frequently targeted by individuals reacting angrily to match results, particularly when betting interests are involved.
A report published by the WTA and the International Tennis Federation found that 458 players were direct targets of online abuse in 2024. Research conducted through the Signify Group’s artificial intelligence-powered monitoring system also identified frustrated gamblers as a major source of harassment.
Figures covering 2025 showed that gamblers were responsible for 42 per cent of verified abusive messages and 59 per cent of cases classified as serious abuse.
Burrage is not the only British tennis player to have raised concerns about the issue. Fellow compatriot Katie Boulter has also spoken publicly about receiving death threats, including messages targeting members of her family.
Boulter previously explained that the threats sometimes made her question her personal safety, particularly because players could not always establish whether the individuals behind the messages were nearby or had access to information about their private lives.
The WTA’s player board has previously condemned online abuse, describing it as unacceptable and warning that its psychological and emotional consequences could be significant.
Meanwhile, the latest incident involving Burrage has once again exposed the vulnerability of professional athletes to online harassment, particularly in a sport where individual performances and results are constantly scrutinised.
While defeat is an unavoidable part of professional competition, the growing use of death threats and personal attacks against players raises serious questions about accountability, player welfare and the responsibility of social media companies.
For Burrage, her return to the WTA Tour was supposed to mark an important step in rebuilding her singles career after a lengthy absence. Instead, her experience in Chennai has brought renewed attention to a problem that continues to follow players beyond the tennis court.
