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The life and times of Boris Becker.Credit: Artwork: Marija Ercegovac<\/p>\n
In typical gruelling January heat on court one (which later became Margaret Court Arena), Becker won the first two sets in tie-breakers, but slumped to a 6-0 deficit in the third, setting the scene for a thrilling finale.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can say tanking,\u201d Camporese recalled when asked to explain the 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-5), 0-6 mid-match scoreline. \u201cWhen I made the second break [in the third set], he tanked a little bit. He takes the energy for the fourth set.\u201d<\/p>\n
Becker got his nose in front 14-12 in a final set that lasted more than two hours. Instead of packing his bags and again making an early trip to the airport, then 23-year-old Becker went on to claim the title, stopping Ivan Lendl from winning three in a row, and securing the world No.1 ranking for the first and only time in his career.<\/p>\n
Decades later, Becker fondly remembers the match and the day, confirming that he and Camporese reflected on it late last year at the ATP Finals in Turin.<\/p>\n
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This year\u2019s Australian Open marks 30 years since Boris Becker\u2019s 1996 win over Michael Chang – the sixth and final grand slam title of his career.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, for me it was good memories, for him, not so good,\u201d Becker told this masthead.<\/p>\n
\u201cWinning a grand slam [event] is very difficult. Very, very few players go through the rounds, not losing a set \u2013 that\u2019s not normal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Becker\u2019s dazzling career included a number of big moments in Australia; the final two of his six career slams came in Melbourne.<\/p>\n
Seven years before his \u201991 breakthrough, just days after his 17th birthday, he made the quarter-finals at the Open on Kooyong\u2019s grass, a harbinger to him becoming Wimbledon\u2019s youngest ever male champion just months later.<\/p>\n
In 1996, Becker was again triumphant at the Australian Open, beating Michael Chang. \u201cI didn\u2019t think I had a grand slam left in me,\u201d he said afterwards.<\/p>\n
But for all the on-court highs, there have been many more headline-grabbing lows.<\/p>\n
One of the biggest names in tennis history, a highly successful player who was by Novak Djokovic\u2019s side as his coach for six of the Serbian\u2019s 24 grand slam titles, Becker fell foul of authorities for serious white-collar offences (tax evasion in Germany more than 20 years ago and, more recently, breaches of the UK\u2019s Insolvency Act). In 2022, he was jailed by British authorities for 2\u00bd years, though Becker served far less time than that in exchange for deportation to Germany. <\/p>\n
In his own words, featured in documentaries and a book published last year that detailed his incarceration, Inside \u2013 Winning. Losing. Starting Again, Becker has been humbled by the strong arm of the law.<\/p>\n
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Becker coaching Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open in 2014.Credit: Photographic<\/p>\n
When Australia was gripped by Nick Kyrgios\u2019 charge to the Wimbledon final and a showdown against Djokovic three-and-a-half years ago, the German was watching on too \u2013 but from a prison cell. Djokovic had invited Becker\u2019s partner (Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro, whom the German later married) and Becker\u2019s eldest son Noah into his players\u2019 box for the first round.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s an open secret that Novak and me are still very close. It was a wonderful time being his coach, his mentor, and we kept a close friendship ever since,\u201d Becker said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThroughout all these matches, in particular in the final, I saw my wife and my son \u2026 rooting for him. That was a very emotional time while I was inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
The lowest point<\/p>\n
Becker has been synonymous with juicy tabloid stories for decades \u2013 since he famously surged into the public\u2019s consciousness with his first Wimbledon success as a fresh-faced teen. Only late last year the 58-year-old became a father for the fifth time when Lilian gave birth to a baby girl.<\/p>\n
Becker is also commonly remembered for a paternity suit that stemmed from a brief encounter with Russian model Angela Ermakova at London\u2019s Nobu restaurant in 1999.<\/p>\n
It was April four years ago when he was jailed in the UK for hiding millions of pounds worth of assets after being declared bankrupt in 2017. He had been found guilty of tax evasion charges in Germany two decades earlier but escaped with a suspended prison sentence \u2013 though he was fined \u20ac500,000.<\/p>\n
But his 2022 situation was more serious and had far greater ramifications. He faced 29 counts under the Insolvency Act, and though five were dropped before the trial and he was acquitted of 20, he was convicted on four.<\/p>\n
The country that played host to three of his grand slam victories, at Wimbledon, also witnessed his downfall.<\/p>\n
Pointedly, in sentencing, judge Deborah Taylor criticised Becker for a lack of remorse, telling the German, \u201c[you] sought to distance yourself from the offending in your bankruptcy\u201d.<\/p>\n
Her remarks were stark.<\/p>\n
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\u201cYou have lost your career, reputation and all of your property as a result of your bankruptcy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Becker\u2019s financial woes are myriad. In his book, the German gave a glimpse of how his finances were spiralling out of control in 2013.<\/p>\n
\u201cThings are looking \u2026 maybe not so good. My money is \u2026 let\u2019s just say it could be working better,\u201d he wrote in Inside, reliving the thoughts that dominated his prison flashbacks.<\/p>\n
He described himself as \u201casset rich but cash poor\u201d, losing deals and not earning enough to keep up with the demands of his lifestyle.<\/p>\n
He described spending more to try to get his assets saleable, and struggling to pay the interest on loans worth millions of euros. But it was good money chasing bad.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThis is when the sinking feeling kicks in. At first, the interest rate from [the private bank] has been manageable \u2013 five per cent. But there\u2019s trouble ahead. I\u2019m losing sponsors and I\u2019m losing endorsements. My public image is not where it was. Endless tabloid stories, one shit headline after another,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n
\u201cThings start falling apart, in Germany and then everywhere else. Broadcasting is OK. They still want me to talk about tennis. I still want to talk about tennis. The rest of it is terrible. I\u2019m losing big contracts early. Mercedes I\u2019ve been with for ages, but now they say they have a different marketing plan, going forward. I\u2019m not making any new contracts to replace the ones that disappear.\u201d<\/p>\n
Once sentenced, Becker served time at London\u2019s notorious HMP Wandsworth prison \u2013 coincidentally close to the famed Wimbledon precinct \u2013 before being transferred to HMP Huntercombe.<\/p>\n
As a German national living in the UK, he was eligible for an early release scheme that expedites the deportation of foreign prisoners. After serving only eight months of his sentence, he was released in December that year and sent to his native country.<\/p>\n
In Inside, Becker points out that in other jurisdictions, his crimes would not have been dealt with so harshly.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet me just say that there was so much nonsense written about me leading up to my trial,\u201d he told this masthead.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt the necessity and the urge just to put matter-of-factly [in the book] things that happened and didn\u2019t happen to me \u2013 and also what I was acquitted for and, and what I was sentenced for.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce you just read it [my case] unemotionally, you\u2019ll be surprised that someone would be sentenced for something like that, but UK law is different to German law, [it\u2019s also] different to Italian law, so for the same mistakes, shall I say, I wouldn\u2019t have gotten a penalty in Germany [or] Italy.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut on the other hand, I\u2019m the last one is pointing fingers at other people, right. I\u2019ve done my mistakes. I\u2019ve paid my dues.\u201d<\/p>\n
Too successful, too young?<\/p>\n
Becker speaks frankly now about his early career experiences, and readily admits that winning Wimbledon while still green behind the ears probably did more harm than good.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it [my story] really starts [with] winning Wimbledon at 17, and people start calling you a wunderkind, obviously you\u2019re bound to meet a lot of people \u2013 some are good and some are not so good for you,\u201d said Becker, who was also a celebrity poker player in retirement.<\/p>\n
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That moment at the All-England club in 1985.Credit: Fairfax archives<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you are too young to realise who has true value, who is sincere and who\u2019s not, and that really [has been my situation] all the way up [for me] until my 40s.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked about the salient lessons from his life story, one of Becker\u2019s key messages is \u201cnot to lose faith\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere hasn\u2019t been many, many, examples of how to deal with [winning] Wimbledon [at] 17 because nobody [else] has done it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThat set me up for a very different life than a normal teenager or a normal young, young man that starts into life. But the key is always choose your friends wisely. Also after a big high, there could be a big low, and after a big low, there could be a big high.<\/p>\n
\u201cLife\u2019s long, life\u2019s a marathon, and yes, you have some good years, and you have some bad years, but important is [it] to continue and not to lose faith, and ultimately listen to your family and have a couple of good friends on the side.\u201d <\/p>\n
The Australian connection<\/p>\n
Australians, and a range of experiences playing tennis in Australia, are intertwined in the storied Becker career.<\/p>\n
When farewelled to Wimbledon\u2019s centre court in 1999, it was Pat Rafter who delivered the knockout blow.<\/p>\n
When the elusive Australian Open title first fell his way 35 years ago, it was an Australian coach, Bob Brett, smiling with satisfaction in the stands.<\/p>\n
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Becker on his way to his maiden Australian Open title in 1991.Credit: Allsport UK<\/p>\n
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