Former world number two Alexander Zverev will not face disciplinary action following an investigation into allegations of domestic abuse.
The ATP investigation found there was ‘insufficient evidence’ to back up the claims of Germany’s former girlfriend Olya Sharypova.
In 2020, she accused Zverev, 25, of violence and emotional abuse during their relationshipwhich he denies.
The ATP’s decision could be “reassessed if new evidence comes to light”.
The governing body of men’s professional tennis said it had commissioned a private investigation firm, the Lake Forest Group, to investigate the allegations.
He conducted “in-depth interviews with Sharypova and Zverev” and spoke with 24 other people, including family members, friends and players.
The 15-month investigation looked at text messages, audio files and photos, including material “voluntarily extracted from Zverev’s electronic devices via a third-party forensic expert”.
“Based on a lack of reliable evidence and eyewitness reports, in addition to conflicting statements by Sharypova, Zverev and other interviewees, the investigation was unable to substantiate the allegations of ‘abuse,” the ATP said.
Zverev, a two-time season-ending Tour Finals winner, reached a career-high number two last June before suffering a serious ankle injury in a match against Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros. He returned to action this month.
In 2021 Zverev filed a lawsuit against Sharypova and an online publisher after making new allegations of abuse. He also backed calls for the ATP to introduce a domestic violence policy.
ATP chief executive Massimo Calvelli said the situation had “shown the need for us to be more responsive on safeguarding issues”.
“The seriousness and complexity of these allegations required an extremely thorough investigative process and considerable resources,” he said.
“It also forced us to turn to specialist investigators, which was new for the ATP.”
The ATP commissioned a separate independent backup report in 2021.
