Six-time Grand Slam winner Boris Becker declared bankrupt by registrar who once watched him play
The tennis player’s lawyers had argued there was sufficient evidence that the 49-year-old would be able to pay the debt soon.
Tennis legend Boris Becker was declared bankrupt at a court hearing on Wednesday, reported The Guardian.
The three-time Wimbledon champion’s lawyers asked a bankruptcy court registrar in London on Wednesday for a last chance to pay the debt, which was outstanding since October 2015. However, Registrar Christine Derrett, who recalled watching him play at the centre court, said it was with regret she had concluded there was a lack of credible evidence that his “substantial debt” would be paid soon. She refused to adjourn the case for a further 28 days. “One has the impression of a man with his head in the sand,” she said of the six-time Grand Slam champion.
Private bankers Arbuthnot Latham & Co had made the bankruptcy application in connection with a judgment debt owed to them by Becker dating back to 2015.
Becker’s lawyers had argued there was sufficient evidence the 49-year-old would be able to pay the debt soon through a refinancing arrangement. The lawyers said they were planning to remortgage a property in Majorca, which would raise an expected amount of €6m. The expected deal would be approved by a Spanish bank in approximately one month, Becker’s advocate told the registrar on his instructions.
Becker had coached current World No. 4 Novak Djokovic to six Grand Slam titles from 2013 to 2016.