The wife of US baseball star Alex Rodriguez will file for divorce today, citing that his "relationship with Madonna was the latest situation in a series of events" that doomed their five-year union. Cynthia Rodriguez will also cite a "long period of infidelity on the part of Mr Rodriguez" and "emotional abandonment."

The lawyer told the New York Post that an incident last year when Rodriguez, nicknamed 'A-Rod', was caught out with a stripper in Toronto, and a round of lurid allegations about his relationship with chart star Madonna, pushed Mrs Rodriguez over the edge. Another lawyer for Mrs Rodriguez, Earle Lilly, told a US television station: "The last straw was the relationship [with Madonna]. A lot of people are talking about the infidelity. He has dismally failed to keep the marital vows intact."

Meanwhile her husband is also expected to file for divorce in the same court - citing her reluctance to reconcile the marriage. The news comes after Madonna took the unusual step of publicly denying any romance between her and the $28 million-a-year baseball ace. She said on Sunday in a statement: "I am not romantically involved in any way with Alex Rodriguez. I have nothing to do with the state of his marriage." 

But Cynthia Rodriguez has claimed to friends that she found a note A-Rod wrote to Madonna, professing that the singer was his "true soul mate". Alex Rodriguez has refused to comment on his relationship with Madonna - or his split from his wife. A lawyer for the baseball player was unavailable for comment today.