Jodie reveals death threats after WTA Tour return

British tennis player Jodie Burrage has revealed that she received death threats and abusive messages on social media following her first WTA Tour singles appearance in 16 months.

The 27-year-old, ranked 474th in the world, suffered a first-round defeat at the Chennai Open after India’s Vaishnavi Adkar recovered from a set down to secure a 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 victory.

Burrage subsequently shared a video on her Instagram account showing a series of abusive direct messages she had received following the match.

“Nice welcome back to tour. I remember why I left,” the London-born player wrote alongside the video. Germany’s Eva Lys expressed her support for Burrage and called on the WTA to take action, tagging the governing body in an Instagram post and asking: “When will something be done?”

Burrage’s last WTA Tour main-draw appearance, excluding qualifying events, came at Wimbledon in July 2025, where she lost to Catherine McNally in the opening round.

Online abuse targeting female tennis players remains a growing concern. A report published earlier this year revealed that players received more than 12,000 abusive social media posts and messages in 2025.

Data collected by the Signify Group’s threat matrix service, which uses artificial intelligence to identify online threats, showed similar levels of abuse in 2025 and 2024.

The report also found that angry gamblers accounted for 42 per cent of verified abuse last year, including 59 per cent of serious cases.

British player Katie Boulter also told international media in 2025 that she had received death threats, while several players have called for identity verification measures on social media platforms.

The WTA’s player board has previously described such abuse as ‘unacceptable’, warning that its impact can be ‘significant’.