Baghdatis defends himself in controversy over Cyprus

Cypriot tennis ace Marcos Baghdatis defended himself in the face of a controversy on Friday after the release of a video in which he appeared to chant anti-Turkish slogans at a party.

Australian media showed a video of the Cypriot singing songs with friends, a broadcast which was also posted on the video-sharing Web site YouTube.

Baghdatis reacted to the news with a statement in which he defended his actions.

“There has been a lot of coverage of me appearing in a video on youtube.com,” he said.

“In that video from 2007 I was supporting the interest of my country, Cyprus, while protesting against a situation that is not recognised by the United Nations,” he said, referring to the Turkish occupation of the island’s north since 1974.

“Now I would like to concentrate on the tournament and ask everyone to respect that. I love the Australian Open and want to do well here.”

Baghdatis is due to face Australian Lleyton Hewitt in the third round of the tournament on Saturday.