Retired tennis star Martina Hingis will be back on court in June - in the soccer-mad city of Liverpool.

She has agreed to play in a Legends exhibition match during the 7th TFS-ICAP Liverpool International Tournament taking place at  Calderstones Park from June 10 to 15.

Banned from official competition after being found guilty of a doping violation in January last year, two months after announcing her retirement, Hingis says she will play in three exhibition matches during the unofficial Liverpool International, which features ATP, WTA players and a Legends division, two weeks before Wimbledon.

'Hingis, who won five Grand Slams and spent 209 weeks as the world No. 1, is excited to be part of the Legend’s line-up'


Tournament Director, Anders Borg, said: “It's fantastic to have Martina playing for three days during our event. Her attitude on and off the court has always been superb and she still has a lot to offer the world of tennis. She is one of the most successful women tennis players ever and it will be a thrill for everyone to see her play at Calderstones Park.”

Hingis, who won five Grand Slams and spent 209 weeks as the world No. 1, is excited to be part of the Legend’s line-up. She said: "I have heard a lot about Liverpool over the years and all the fine work they have done to develop tennis in a region that is mostly famous for football."

"l am very much looking forward to playing the event and to visit all the places and events that have made Liverpool the European Capital of Culture." Two of her opponents are expected to be WTA No. 46 Caroline Wozniacki and WTA No. 72 Ashley Harkleroad

Hingis is suspended from the international circuit until September, 2009, but Borg explained: “She wants to give something back to the game. Her life goes on and she wants to be part of the exhibition circuit.” Borg believes that Hingis didn’t cheat and won’t be a bad role model for children at the grass-court event.

“She knows within herself that she hasn’t taken anything and I just find it amazing she has tested more than 200 tests in her career and nothing has ever come up,” he said. “Then they find a drug that is not performance-enhancing at all, allegedly taken in the midst of Wimbledon, which I find unbelievable and which she denies.“

“Incredibly she’s still only 27 years old,” Borg said. “She’s still very young and capable of doing it. She reached No. 4 on her second comeback. I think she’s easily a top-10 player again if she wants to be. Let’s hope she considers it.”

Two other former Wimbledon champions Goran Ivanisevic and Pat Cash are also entered in the tournament.