Serving up justice

How Boris Becker went from Wimbledon champion to Wandsworth Prison…

- SEAN MARLAND, RICHARD MCCLURE

NEW FACTUAL

Boris Becker: The Rise and Fall

From Thu 13 July, ITVX

In the summer of 1985, a 17-year-old Boris Becker made history when he became the youngest champion in Wimbledon’s illustrious history.

It was a victory that sparked a spectacular tennis career that saw the German become World No.1 and win six Grand Slam titles. But few people could have foreseen how Becker’s life would slowly unravel in the years after he hung up his racquet in 1999.

IMPRISONMENT

After going bankrupt in 2017, he was convicted last year of failing to hand over assets to repay his debts and spent eight months behind bars, serving his time in London’s Wandsworth Prison.