Injured Agassi withdraws from Australian Open

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- Andre Agassi pulled out of the Australian Open on Wednesday because of a lingering ankle injury.
Agassi, 35, sprained his left ankle playing racquetball on Oct. 12, and aggravated the injury during the season-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, where he was upset in the first round.
He also withdrew Wednesday from next week's Kooyong exhibition event.
"I attempted to play in Shanghai with an injury that was not fully healed, and it set me back substantially," Agassi said in a statement. "I made a commitment to myself not to play unless I can be at my absolute best. Unfortunately, even with the amount of training and rehabilitation I've been going through, my ankle is still not 100 percent.
"These two tournaments mean a great deal to me. I'm disappointed that I will not be able to start the season in Melbourne, but I plan to return to the court as soon as my ankle is fully recovered."
Agassi, a four-time Australian Open champion, finished 2005 ranked No. 7 by the ATP. He won his only title in Los Angeles and had a 38-12 match record. He lost to Roger Federer in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and the U.S. Open final.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.