Becker has a career as a TV reporter and commentator and he is now trying his hand at poker, playing on the Pokerstars European tour.

He laughed off media reports this week suggesting he was taking up the game professionally, while playing down the importance of recent reports into gambling in tennis.

"The main thing for me is to have a good time," he said. "I don't have the talent or the time to be a professional poker player. I don't even bet, and I never heard anything about players gambling during my time. There wasn't even doping then!

"I think the story is bigger than the reality. Yes, a couple of players were caught. They weren't in the top 10 or even in the top 20 or 30. Yes it's a story, but I don't think it's going to affect anyone very much."

As for the future, Becker has no plans to return to tennis in any serious way but he is excited about the future.

"I think for a while it was boring," Becker said. "I thought two or three years ago it was a given: Roger Federer was playing and Roger Federer would win."

(Agencies via Shanghai Daily March 5, 2008)