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Aussie Klein tennis ban for racial slur

Former junior Australian Open champion Brydan Klein said on Friday he accepted a six-month ban and will undergo a racial sensitivity course after making a racial slur against another player.

Klein, 19, was handed the ban by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and fined 10,000 US dollars for calling black South African Raven Klaasen a "kaffir" during the Eastbourne International in England last month.

"I sincerely regret my error in judgment in using the language I did and I am deeply sorry for the offence caused," Klein said in a statement.

"I am accepting of the ATP's ruling and am now looking to put the whole incident behind me.

The 186th-ranked Australian has been suspended from the ATP World Tour and Challenger events for six months from July 20, although two months of that will be probationary should he successfully complete the racial sensitivity course.

"I will undergo a racial sensitivity course and am determined to learn from this mistake," Klein said.

"I plan to do everything I can to grow as a person and later as a tennis player by improving myself both off and on the court over the next four months.

"My aim is now to return to tournament play at the end of 2009 and focus on a strong Australian summer on the court."

Klein has had a chequered past because of his temperamental behaviour and was previously suspended from the Australian Institute of Sport after repeated on-court misbehaviour.

Tennis West (Australia) president Dean Williams said tennis authorities were "fed up" with Klein's history of poor behaviour.

"Tennis Australia is fed up. They are pouring a lot of money into these kids, hundreds of thousands of dollars," Williams told the West Australian newspaper.

"People around Australia are also fed up with this sort of behaviour and Tennis Australia has now thrown the book at him to show young kids (that) it's not acceptable."

Tennis Australia director of tennis Craig Tiley said Klein's behaviour was "unacceptable".

"Tennis Australia completely supports the sanction and is heartened by the fact that Brydan will undergo the racial sensitivity course," Tiley said late Friday.

"We hope that at the very least he can learn something from this."