Agassi should have been punished then: Nadal

World number one Roger Federer,who beat Agassi in the final of the 2005 US Open,also spoke of his sadness at the eight-time major winner’s admission in his new autobiography Open. “It was a shock when I heard the news,” Federer said at a sponsors meeting at Kilchberg near Zurich. “I am disappointed and I hope there are no more such cases in future… our sport must stay clean.”

However,Agassi found support at home with fellow American Andy Roddick saying the 39-year-old remained his hero despite the revelations. Roddick was one of many compatriots who remained unfazed by Agassi’s admissions. “Andre is and always will be my idol. I will judge him on how he has treated me and how he has changed the world for (the) better,” Roddick wrote on his Twitter page.

Roddick said Agassi’s letter to the ATP,in which he told the governing body he had failed a drugs test because his drink had been spiked,came at a time when the player was far from his peak. “To be fair,when Andre wrote the reported letter,he was well outside the top 100 and widely viewed as on the way out,” said Roddick.

Women’s world number two Serena Williams reacted to the news by plugging her own book. “I don’t even know what crystal meth is so,you know,that’s what my reaction to it is. I haven’t read anything about Andre Agassi’s book. All I know is that I have a book coming out,” she told reporters in Doha. Serena’s sister Venus,the world number seven,added: “His book will probably sell. It seems very interesting,to say the least.”

Shocking,says Navratilova

Grand Slam champions Martina Navratilova and Marat Safin say Agassi should have owned up when it happened 12 years ago. “Shocking,” said Navratilova. “Andre lied and got away with it,” she said. “You can’t correct that now. Do you take away a title he wouldn’t have won if he had been suspended?”

Safin said he should have spoken up at the time of the test or kept his mouth shut. “One should know how to be silent,but if you are so smart you should have spoken up earlier,” said Safin. “You will never live to see such revelations from me.”