Tennis-Wimbledon-Argentine player battles on court and off

By Paul Majendie

LONDON, June 24 (Reuters) - Argentine Martin Vassallo Arguello, embroiled in a tennis betting probe, let his tennis do the talking on Tuesday with a Wimbledon victory that left him shaking with emotion.

He fell to his knees, sobbing with relief after his 6-4 2-6 2-6 6-2 6-2 first round victory over Czech Ivo Minar.

But Vassallo Arguello, drained after his epic struggle, felt he could not celebrate fully until his name was cleared by tennis authorities who are investigating 45 matches over the last five years for possible betting irregularities.

The most high-profile case to arouse suspicion was a match between world number four Nikolay Davydenko of Russia and Vassallo Arguello in Poland, where irregular betting patterns were noted.

There was heavy gambling on the match in August last year on Betfair, a British online betting company, for Davydenko to lose. He won the first set but retired with an injury in the third set.

Betfair voided all bets on the match and reported it to the ATP, which asked the two players for mobile phone records. This and the other cases are still being investigated.

Both men have denied any involvement in betting.

Vassallo Arguello, signing autographs and posing for photos after Tuesday's match, is determined to clear his name.