WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Tennis star Alex de Minaur has attacked the prime minister in a series of political statements.
OUR VERDICT
False. The quotes attributed to the tennis player are fake.
AAP FACTCHECK - A network of Facebook disinformation pages has shifted its focus to tennis - particularly Australian star Alex de Minaur - to promote false claims.
The claims made about the 26-year-old are baseless and many appear to have been created using artificial intelligence (AI).
They have originated from a series of Vietnam-operated Facebook disinformation pages, which AAP FactCheck has debunked multiple times.
The pages have shifted their focus on several occasions in recent months, notably honing in on Australian politics and then the aftermath of the Bondi terror attack.
The posts follow a familiar pattern of vague claims and enticing clickbait aimed to build engagement while piggybacking on news events or popular names and political topics.
De Minaur is competing in the Australian Open from January 19, after recent matches at the United Cup in Perth and Sydney.
The posts link to an external website via the comments that feature supposed news stories with further falsehoods.
One post about de Minaur claims the player lashed out after being defeated at the United Cup, saying that it was unfair as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was backing his Polish opponent, Hubert Hurkacz.
"Albanese manipulates the match because I defended the people and supported [One Nation leader] Mrs. [Pauline] Hanson, it's disgraceful that the most powerful person in Australia harms his own countrymen," the post reads.
The post claims that Mr Albanese also posted on social media that de Minaur was "a mediocre player, loses but won't accept it and blames others - what can he do besides blaming?".
There is no record that de Minaur said anything of the sort, nor that he's voiced support for Pauline Hanson. Likewise, the post attributed to Mr Albanese is entirely fabricated.
The post also gets details of the United Cup wrong. De Minaur beat Hurkacz in the United Cup quarter finals, but the Australian team was knocked out of the tournament when his teammates lost their matches against their Polish opponents.
Another post claims the tennis star accused Mr Albanese of influencing referees and said the prime minister was a "coward" who "tried to harm me when I dared to stand up and expose his truth".
Again, there is no evidence de Minaur said this.
Another post claims that the player said he might withdraw from the United Cup as he didn't want to play in a tournament that has "political interference".
"...why should I try to compete when the entire organization has been bought off, a disgrace in tennis," the post quotes de Minaur as saying.
There is no evidence de Minaur said this either.
The posts conclude with vague lines like "a shocking statement was issued" that entice readers to learn more by clicking on a link to an external page in the comments.
Another post claims Senator Pauline Hanson spoke out to defend de Minaur and insulted Mr Albanese for "despicable tricks" against the tennis star.
The story linked in the post claims Senator Hanson said on social media and in a "late-night interview" that Mr Albanese was "a prime minister yet using despicable tricks to harm the person who brings glory to Australia itself, just because he dared to stand up to protect the people against your UNFAIR actions?".
There is no evidence the senator said this.
One post claims de Minaur called for a boycott of "LGBT and the Labor Party," and that Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong responded with a "blistering on-air attack" on live television.
Again, there is no evidence that this happened.
De Minaur's mother is even the subject of some posts.
One post with the eye-catching headline "DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH MY SON" claims that Esther de Minaur "broke her silence" to defend her son.
"How can anyone be cruel enough to abandon, criticize, and destroy the spirit of a 26-year-old man," the post quotes her as saying.
Again, the quotes are fabricated and the post features what appears to be an AI-generated image of her.
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