Andre and Steffi marry in Vegas

Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf have married in a low-key, private ceremony in Las Vegas.

The tennis stars were determined to keep yesterday's event secret and exchanged vows in Las Vegas, Agassi's home town, watched by a small group of family and friends.

It was not revealed where in the gambling town the marriage took place, and few details were available. But the couple released a joint statement saying: "We are so blessed to be married and starting this chapter of our lives. The privacy and intimacy of our ceremony was beautiful and reflective of all we value."

The former Wimbledon champions, whose relationship has been the subject of intense speculation in the tennis world, are expecting their first child, a boy, in December. Only last month Agassi, 31, said they planned to delay marriage until after their son was born and "everybody (has) kind of recovered".

Graf, 32, who won 22 grand slam titles before retiring in 1999, and Agassi decided against a big showbusiness-style ceremony - perhaps as a reaction to his first wedding. Agassi married Brooke Shields in a lavish ceremony on Pebble Beach, central California, in 1997, as helicopters filled with photographers buzzed overhead.

She filed for divorce two years later.