I’ve hit rock bottom & I don’t know what to make of it, disgraced Wimbledon star Boris Becker says in tearful interview
BORIS Becker broke down in tears during an emotional interview before being jailed for hiding his millions when he went bankrupt.
The disgraced Wimbledon star, 55, said he had hit his “bottom” as he waited to hear his fate before his sentencing in April.
The BBC pundit was found guilty of flouting insolvency rules by concealing more than £2.5million in cash, shares and property.
He was slapped with a sentence of two and a half years – but is set to be deported to Germany and freed from Huntercombe jail in Oxfordshire after almost eight months.
A clip showing the former world number one grappling with his emotions ahead of the sentencing has now been released by filmmakers of an untitled upcoming documentary.
He struggled to hide his sadness while sitting down with interviewers for the new Apple TV+ two-part series.
A tearful Becker told the camera: ” I’ve hit my (rock) bottom, I don’t know what to make of it.
“I will face it, I’m not going to hide or run away. I will accept whatever sentence I’m going to get.
“It’s Wednesday afternoon and on Friday, I know the rest of my life.”
The explosive docuseries is set to delve into the highs and lows of the tennis star’s illustrious career and “tumultuous” personal life.
Director Alex Gibney and producer John Battsek have been documenting his troubles for three years in “deeply intimate interviews.”
The Oscar-winners also sat down with his immediate family as well as sporting rivals such as John McEnroe, Mats Wilander and Michael Stich.
Novak Djokovic, who was coached by Becker for three years, will also appear in the show alongside Bjorn Borg.
No title or release date for the documentary have yet been announced.
But it is likely to air when Becker is already a free man, as he is expected to serve just half of his 30-month sentence.
He was approved for a fast-track scheme under which foreign cons are sent to their home countries to ease the pressure on British prisons.
The early release scheme allows “any foreign national serving a fixed sentence who is liable for removal from the UK to be removed from prison and deported up to 12 months before the earliest release point of their sentence.”
Offenders benefit by cutting up to 135 days from their sentences if they agree to go home.
However, the sporting ace, who has lived in London since 2012, will have to surrender most of his money when he is deported to Germany.
Although he won’t have to serve any more jail time in his homeland, he will not be allowed to keep the majority of his cash.
Becker was declared bankrupt on June 21 2017 over an unpaid loan of more than £3million on his estate in Majorca, Spain.
He claimed he had cooperated with trustees tasked with securing his assets, even offering up his wedding ring, and said he had acted on expert advice.
But the German national was found guilty of four charges under the Insolvency Act after trying to keep £2million from his creditors.
He has a previous conviction for tax evasion and attempted tax evasion in Germany in 2002.
Aged just 17, Becker burst onto the scene in 1985 when he became Wimbledon’s youngest singles champion and the first unseeded player to lift the trophy at the All England Club.
Becker’s dynamic play and boyish enthusiasm – best captured in his penchant for spectacular diving volleys – made him the darling of Wimbledon crowds.
He successfully defended his Wimbledon title a year later, thrashing world number one Ivan Lendl in straight sets in the final.
Becker’s ferocious serve led to the nicknames “Baby Boom Boom” and “Der Bomber”.