Washington - Basketball star Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks is seeking custody of a yet-to-be born child of his former girlfriend, according to media reports Friday.

The petition, filed on June 12 in the district court of Dallas County, Texas, also seeks a paternity test to determine whether the child being carried by ex-girlfriend Cristal Taylor was fathered by the German basketball whiz.

Nowitzki's petition to determine parentage and gain sole custody of the baby claims that the mother has "repeatedly made public statements" that "DN" is the biological father of the child.

The document only refers to her as "CT." The Dallas News daily newspaper, which posted the link to the court document online, reported that Taylor has given birth to at least three or four other children whom she did not subsequently raise. The newspaper quoted the alleged fathers of those children.

Nowitzki's court petition expresses concern for the "safety and welfare of the child." If the 30-year-old basketball star's custody is challenged, Nowitzki asked the court to order a "social study" of the homes of the other people seeking custody.

Taylor was arrested in May and has been in a Texas jail on a 2006 theft-of-service charge, the Dallas News reported.(dpa)