tennis

Six-time Grand Slam champion Boris Becker declared bankrupt by British court

Published Jun. 21, 2017 3:26 p.m. ET

LONDON -- Boris Becker was declared bankrupt by a British court on Wednesday after the former tennis player failed to pay a long-standing debt.

A lawyer for the six-time Grand Slam champion pleaded with a Bankruptcy Court registrar in London for a last chance to pay a debt that Becker has owed to private bankers Arbuthnot Latham & Co. since 2015.

The registrar, Christine Derrett, said there was a lack of credible evidence that his debt would be paid soon. She refused to adjourn the case for another 28 days and announced a bankruptcy order.

"One has the impression of a man with his head in the sand," said the registrar, who said she watched Becker play on Centre Court at Wimbledon.

The 49-year-old Becker, who was born in Germany and lives in London, recently coached Novak Djokovic and has been a TV commentator.

Becker took to Twitter later Wednesday, saying he was "surprised and disappointed" that proceedings had been brought against him and that it was "disappointing" that his request for a postponement had been refused.

https://twitter.com/TheBorisBecker/status/877593877837991938

https://twitter.com/TheBorisBecker/status/877594532166193155

He said that he intends to challenge the ruling "immediately."

https://twitter.com/TheBorisBecker/status/877595040440176640

https://twitter.com/TheBorisBecker/status/877595479541817345

https://twitter.com/TheBorisBecker/status/877595792822980609

His lawyer, John Briggs, had argued there was sufficient evidence to show that Becker would be able to pay the debt through a refinancing arrangement, involving remortgaging a property in Mallorca, which was expected to raise 6 million euros ($6.7 million). Briggs said it was expected the deal would be approved by a Spanish bank in about one month.

Briggs also said Becker was "not a sophisticated individual when it comes to finances," and that bankruptcy was likely to have an adverse effect on Becker's image.

"He should have thought about that a long time ago," the registrar said.

Get more from tennis Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more

in this topic