Paulo Maldini's professional tennis debut ends in defeat

Italy and AC Milan legend Paulo Maldini has suffered defeat on his professional tennis debut at the Aspria Tennis Cup.

The 49-year-old was handed a wildcard entry into the ATP Challenger doubles event in Milan, where he partnered coach Stefano Landonio, after winning a qualifier at the weekend.

Maldini, who celebrated his birthday on Monday, was unable to pull off a major shock as he and his partner fell to a 6-1 6-1 loss at the hands of Tomasz Bednarek and David Pel.

The unfancied pair did manage to win two games in the one-sided contest, however, which lasted a total of 42 minutes in the Italian city.

Maldini won seven Serie A titles with Milan, as well as the European Cup on five occasions, before retiring in 2009 at the age of 41.