Tennis’ golden couple split up

Lleyton Hewitt and Kim Clijsters, tennis’ most high-profile couple, have split up.

The Australian and Belgian had been due to marry in February but a statement on Clijsters’ website said their engagement was over.

It said the couple had “jointly decided to put an end to their relationship for private reasons“.

The statement added: “Both of us distance ourselves from the malicious gossip which inevitably surfaces in this kind of situation.”

The relationship between the 23-year-old Hewitt and the 21-year-old Clijsters began after the Australian Open in 2000.