Hewitt, after going down fighting to David Ferrer at his farewell tournament, rounded on an anonymous online blog linking his name to the explosive report which has overshadowed the year's first Grand Slam.
Former world number one Lleyton Hewitt slammed match-fixing allegations as an "absolute farce" on Thursday as his emotional retirement at the Australian Open was tainted by the corruption claims which have rocked tennis.
Hewitt, after going down fighting to David Ferrer at his farewell tournament, rounded on an anonymous online blog linking his name to the explosive report which has overshadowed the year's first Grand Slam. The 34-year-old Australian called it a "joke" and an "absolute farce" that he should be linked with the match-fixing allegations outlined by the original BBC and BuzzFeed report, which did not reveal any names.
"I think it's a joke to deal with it. You know, obviously, yeah, there's no possible way," said Hewitt, after exiting in the second round. "I know my name's now been thrown into it. I don't think anyone here would think that I've done anything (like) corruption or match-fixing. It's just absurd."
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"For anyone that tries to go any further with it, then good luck. Take me on with it. Yeah, it's disappointing. I think throwing my name out there with it makes the whole thing an absolute farce," he added. Hewitt's strong denial comes after top-ranked Novak Djokovic also rejected a claim aired in the Italian press that he deliberately lost a match in 2007.
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The spiralling intrigue comes after the BBC and BuzzFeed said 16 unnamed players who reached the top 50 over the past decade had been suspected of repeatedly fixing matches, but never faced action. Tennis is just the latest sport to be hit by controversy after athletics was engulfed in claims of a doping cover-up and football body FIFA suffered multiple scandals. It cast a shadow over an emotional night for Hewitt, who bowed out 6-2, 6-4, 6-4 in the second round in combustible fashion, earning a code violation for swearing and calling the umpire a "frigging idiot".
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Afterwards Hewitt, wearing a shirt decorated with the Australian flag, was joined on court by his three children while his wife, former soap opera actress Bec, looked on in tears. "I gave everything I had, like always, and left nothing in the locker room and that's something I can always be proud of," Hewitt told the crowd.
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Lleyton Hewitt said he was proud of his contribution in taking down the tennis giants on Thursday after his 20th and final appearance in the Australian Open singles came to a close.
The Australian, whose 18-year career will officially end once he is knocked out of the men's doubles with Sam Groth, was still scurrying around the baseline to reasonable effect against Spain's David Ferrer, but could not avoid a 6-2 6-4 6-4 defeat.
Also Read: Tennis match-fixing: Australian Open under scrutiny as more players speak out
After soaking up the atmosphere of a night session on Rod Laver Court one last time, former world number one Hewitt spoke to the world's media about his greatest achievements. He pointed to his 2001 U.S. Open triumph against Pete Sampras and his Wimbledon title a year later -- titles that proved that baseline craftsmen could prosper in a sport where physical power and booming serves were taking over.
"I guess guys playing from the back of the court obviously started believing once they saw that I was able to do it, especially on all surfaces," he told reporters. "It was really kind of the total changing of how tennis was played in a lot of ways, especially on grass."
"There wasn't a lot of guys that would stay back and play from the back of the court. A lot of guys learnt or believed that they could do it playing that way. That was probably my biggest thing. Obviously I think the other guys came in, and Roger (Federer) and that took it to a totally new level," he added.
Hewitt will soon concentrate on blending his country's young guns, the likes of Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis into a team capable of winning the Davis Cup. If they show the same passion that he did throughout his career there will be exciting times ahead.
"I've loved every minute of playing for Australia, wearing the green and gold," Hewitt said, as he was flanked by his three children at a media conference. "Out on the court obviously you got so many things going through your head. You're trying to soak it up as much as possible out there one last time. I was getting goosebumps at times ... (and) tried to soak it up and enjoy it as much as possible."
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