Latest news with #BorisBecker
Scottish Sun
4 days ago
- Sport
- Scottish Sun
BBC and TNT Sports ‘snub Boris Becker for Wimbledon pundit role' even though tennis icon can return to UK after prison
Becker has previously spoken about his potential return to SW19 BOR OFF BBC and TNT Sports 'snub Boris Becker for Wimbledon pundit role' even though tennis icon can return to UK after prison BORIS BECKER has reportedly been snubbed by broadcasters for a role as a pundit at Wimbledon. The tennis icon can apply to re-enter the UK following his prison sentence for hiding millions in assets and loans to avoid paying debts. Advertisement 3 Boris Becker has been snubbed by two broadcasters at Wimbledon Credit: Getty 3 He won the tournament aged 17 in 1985 Credit: Getty Becker, 57, was released after eight months of his 30-month sentence in December 2022. The Daily Mail have reported that he would be eligible to apply to come back to the UK through the Home Office as per the terms of his conviction and deportation. Despite being able to potentially return, he has not been offered a role for Wimbledon. The report claims that the BBC have "resisted the temptation" to bring the German back into the fold. Advertisement This is despite the 2025 edition of the tournament marking the 40th anniversary of his first Wimbledon title. Becker was aged just 17 when he became the men's singles champion in 1985. He had been a regular member of the BBC's tennis coverage since 2002. He has returned to TV screens since his release from prison, as he was a pundit for TNT Sports during the French Open earlier this month. Advertisement However, it is understood that TNT have "no plans" to have Becker represent them at Wimbledon. Meanwhile, Becker is releasing a book later this year about his time behind bars. 3 He has previously spoken about his potential return to SW19. Advertisement He said: "I'm working hard with the authorities to have all the applications ready to be back for next year. "I miss Wimbledon. It's part of my life. It's in my DNA. "I don't think anyone alive knows Wimbledon as well as I do. But let's see who I'm working for there. "After October 2024, I can be given permission from the Home Office. They decide, I don't decide." Advertisement The BBC will unveil their pundit line-up next week, but it will not include Nick Kyrgios after he was AXED.
The Sun
4 days ago
- Sport
- The Sun
BBC and TNT Sports ‘snub Boris Becker for Wimbledon pundit role' even though tennis icon can return to UK after prison
BORIS BECKER has reportedly been snubbed by broadcasters for a role as a pundit at Wimbledon. The tennis icon can apply to re-enter the UK following his prison sentence for hiding millions in assets and loans to avoid paying debts. 2 2 Becker, 57, was released after eight months of his 30-month sentence in December 2022. The Daily Mail have reported that he would be eligible to apply to come back to the UK through the Home Office as per the terms of his conviction and deportation. Despite being able to potentially return, he has not been offered a role for Wimbledon. The report claims that the BBC have "resisted the temptation" to bring the German back into the fold. This is despite the 2025 edition of the tournament marking the 40th anniversary of his first Wimbledon title. Becker was aged just 17 when he became the men's singles champion in 1985. He had been a regular member of the BBC's tennis coverage since 2002. He has returned to TV screens since his release from prison, as he was a pundit for TNT Sports during the French Open earlier this month. However, it is understood that TNT have "no plans" to have Becker represent them at Wimbledon. Meanwhile, Becker is releasing a book later this year about his time behind bars. He has previously spoken about his potential return to SW19. He said: "I'm working hard with the authorities to have all the applications ready to be back for next year. "I miss Wimbledon. It's part of my life. It's in my DNA. "I don't think anyone alive knows Wimbledon as well as I do. But let's see who I'm working for there. "After October 2024, I can be given permission from the Home Office. They decide, I don't decide." The BBC will unveil their pundit line-up next week, but it will not include Nick Kyrgios after he was AXED.
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Boris Becker snubbed by the BBC as tennis icon sees Wimbledon hopes end
Boris Becker has become synonymous with Wimbledon after winning the competition three times but the 57-year-old will not be involved as a BBC pundit this year after being jailed in 2022 for hiding assets amid his bankruptcy Tennis legend Boris Becker has been snubbed from BBC's Wimbledon punditry line-up, despite being allowed to apply for re-entry to the UK following his jail sentence in 2022. The 57-year-old was handed two-and-a-half years in prison for hiding £2.5million worth of asserts to avoid paying loans following his bankruptcy. Becker served just eight months of his sentence and was then deported from the UK, unable to attend matches at Wimbledon in that time. He has been able to apply to re-enter the country since October 2024 and was hopeful he could finally make his comeback to the All England Club, the place where he won three Wimbledon championships during his esteemed career. But according to the Daily Mail, BBC chiefs have swerved on plans to include Becker in their coverage team. READ MORE: John McEnroe shouted six-word message down the phone after Wimbledon champ sold trophies TNT Sports are also set to decline on the opportunity to use Becker in their broadcast of the tournament after securing rights to daily highlights of the Grand Slam. Becker will detail his struggles in prison in a new book that is set to be released in September. Earlier this year, he admitted he missed being part of Wimbledon coverage and was doing what he could to return to the UK. "I'm working hard with the authorities to have all the applications ready to be back for next year,' Becker said in April. "I miss Wimbledon. It's part of my life. It's in my DNA. I don't think anyone alive knows Wimbledon as well as I do. But let's see who I'm working for there. After October 2024, I can be given permission from the Home Office. They decide, I don't decide." It comes after the BBC also axed controversial tennis star Nick Kyrgios from their coverage this year, 12 months after he admitted assaulting ex-girlfriend Chiara Passari. Kyrgios was included as a pundit in the 2024 edition of the tournament, which led to widespread criticism following the incident from an argument with Passari in 2021. Sources close to the Australian insist that with him planning to enter the tournament as a player, he wouldn't have been able to be included as a pundit as well.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE BBC and TNT Sports SNUB Boris Becker for Wimbledon TV work despite now being allowed to return to UK after he was jailed and deported for £2.5m tax evasion
Boris Becker will not be part of the BBC 's Wimbledon coverage - even though he can now apply to return to the UK. The German has not worked for the Beeb at SW19 since he was jailed in April 2022 for hiding £2.5million in assets and loans to avoid paying debts. Becker was released after serving just eight months of his 30-month sentence, but was then deported from the country, barring him from even attending the All England Club. Under the terms of his conviction and deportation, the three-time Wimbledon champion has been eligible to apply to the Home Office for re-entry since October 2024 – and had hoped to be back at SW19 this summer. However, Mail Sport understands that the BBC has resisted the temptation to rehire Becker, even in the 40th-anniversary year of his famous first Wimbledon title. Becker – who remains the youngest men's singles champion following his 1985 victory aged just 17 – first joined the Beeb's team in 2002 and was a popular pundit and commentator for the broadcaster for two decades. Becker was deported from the UK in 2022 after serving eight months of a 30-month sentence for hiding £2.5million in assets and loans to avoid paying debts Since his release from prison, the 57-year-old has worked on TV again for TNT Sports, most recently appearing at the French Open earlier this month. But TNT also has no plans to use Becker at Wimbledon - despite the pay-TV channel now holding daily highlights rights, as well as sharing live coverage of the singles finals with the BBC. It remains unclear whether Becker will work for another broadcaster during the tournament or appear as a guest at the All England Club. The 57-year-old, who is releasing a book about his time in prison this September, has remained coy about a Wimbledon return in recent interviews. However, in April 2024, Becker admitted he was hopeful of making his commentary comeback at SW19 in 2025. 'I'm working hard with the authorities to have all the applications ready to be back for next year,' he said. 'I miss Wimbledon. It's part of my life. It's in my DNA. I don't think anyone alive knows Wimbledon as well as I do. But let's see who I'm working for there. 'After October 2024, I can be given permission from the Home Office. They decide, I don't decide.' It remains unclear whether Becker, who is releasing a book about his time in prison, will work for another broadcaster during the tournament or attend the Championships as a guest The BBC plan to unveil their Wimbledon line-up later this week, with Nick Kyrgios also omitted following his controversial stint last year. The Beeb faced strong criticism from senior MPs and women's campaigners for hiring the Australian bad boy in 2024, a year after he admitted assaulting an ex-girlfriend.
Forbes
6 days ago
- Sport
- Forbes
The Best Men's Queen's Club Finals From Becker to Murray
After qualifier Tatjana Maria won the first WTA Queen's Club tournament for 52 years on Sunday, the ATP 500 event in West Kensington, London returns from June 16. The venue's Centre Court is named after Andy Murray, one of many Grand Slam champions who have won the men's Queen's Club title over the years. There's a $538,000 prize for the 2025 champion. John McEnroe, Andy Roddick, Ivan Lendl, Lleyton Hewitt and Pete Sampras are just some of the other legendary champions of this prestigious pre-Wimbledon grass court event. Here are five of the best ever finals. Boris Becker had already won two Wimbledons and a Queen's Club title by the time he entered the West London event in 1987. The German was a big favorite against a 34-year-old Jimmy Connors. 'The Brash Basher of Belleville' was without a tournament win for over two years. However, Connors had other ideas and returned the 19-year-old's serve superbly, taking the first set tiebreak and then having chances to go a double break up in the second before losing 7-6, 3-6, 4-6. 'For one-and-a-half sets today, I could not get my timing. Jimmy was running around better than I was, even though he could almost be my father,' said the German. Connors took out his frustration a fortnight later against Mikael Pernfors in a match for the ages at Wimbledon, coming back from 1-6, 1-6, 1-4 to win in five. Becker showed more vulnerabilities on serve, losing to Australian Peter Doohan in the second round as his efforts to win a third consecutive SW19 title ended. Home favorite Tim Henman threatened to win Queen's in the late 1990s. His nemesis, Pete Sampras, stood in the way. Henman was an old-fashioned grass court expert who bore the pre-Murray pressure of trying to win Wimbledon with a British stiff upper lip. He outlasted 'Pistol Pete' in a first set tiebreak to raise the crowd volume but lost the second 6-4. Sampras was without a tournament victory in 1999 and Henman had three break points at 2-1 in the final set to expose that weakness. He missed them and the second seed prevailed to claim a second Queen's Championshi . This injected new life into Sampras who went on a 24-match winning streak, a run that included his sixth Wimbledon title in seven years. He beat Henman in the semifinals on Independence Day. Andy Murray won five Queen's Club Championships from 2009 to 2016, the year he finally became world No. 1. The Scot was denied the normal weekend trophy lift after Sunday's play was washed out. In the spirit of the 2001 Wimbledon final between Goran Ivanisevic and Pat Rafter, a capacity Monday crowd came to fill the seats with 1,000 watching on a big screen outside too. The Frenchman had disposed of Rafael Nadal in the semifinals and took the first set 6-3, diving around like a 1980s Boris Becker. Murray fought back by winning the next on the tiebreak. The two finalists tussled in a tight third and Murray got his way when he finally broke the Frenchman's serve. He even had time for a tweener at the net at 5-3 up. "This has been one of the most fun weeks I've had on the tour. I've loved it,' said the British No. 1 afterwards. Murray showed his Slam credentials by making it to the Wimbledon semifinals the following month. Two years later, he lifted the Wimbledon crown. One big name missing from the roll call of Queen's Club winners is Novak Djokovic. The Serb hadn't played at the event for eight years when he accepted a wild card invite in 2018 to try and get some confidence going before Wimbledon. Number one seed Marin Cilic, who Roger Federer beat in the Australian Open final that year, was waiting. Djokovic's form was in a funk coming into the tournament and he left rather despondent after a titanic match which was a shade under three hours. Djokovic appeared on course after claiming the first set 7-5 and then going 4-1 up in the second set tiebreak. Everything unravelled thereafter as the 12-time major champion became indecisive, opening the door for Cilic to power through and claim the third 6-3. This was the Croat's second Queen's Club title, one that he had to work much harder for than the 2012 edition when opponent David Nalbandian was disqualified for inadvertently injuring a linesman. Feliciano Lopez was a regular at Queen's Club and had been desperately close to winning the trophy after having a match point against Grigor Dimitrov in 2014. The 35-year-old Spaniard was playing Marin Cilic who would go all the way to the final at Wimbledon a month later. Lopez had fully deserved his spot in the final after beating Stan Wawrinka, Tomas Berdych and Dimitrov in the previous rounds. Despite losing a tight first set 6-4, Lopez strode away with a second set tiebreak. Both men were playing tennis of such high quality that they were broken only once all week. The deciding set was destined to be another shootout and it was an epic as Lopez edged it 10-8. He became the oldest winner of the Queen's Club Championship in the professional era. Lopez broke that record himself when he secured a second title two years later at the age of 37. He also won the doubles alongside Murray which started barely half an hour after his singles win. The Queen's Club Championships is one of the best ATP 500 events out there and gets the juices flowing for the only major still on grass. Carlos Alcaraz won Queen's in 2023 and then followed it up with his maiden Wimbledon crown. Can the Spaniard repeat the double and make it six out of six majors?
