Australian Open: Boris Becker is back: “My greatest passion”

Boris Becker is back. From this Monday onwards, the three-time Wimbledon champion will do what he loves to do and what many fans believe he can do best: comment on tennis matches.

“I missed the closeness enormously, after all, tennis is my greatest passion,” said Becker in an interview with the TV channel Eurosport, for which he will again comment on the Australian Open in Melbourne as an expert.

A month after his early release from prison and the fight “for bare survival” Becker can devote himself to his love of tennis again. His TV return for the Australian Open from January 16th to 29th is also a step towards normality for the six-time Grand Slam tournament winner.

Tennis was played in prison

And Becker sees himself well prepared. “I couldn’t follow every tournament, but I got the BBC and ITV, so I could follow every match in Wimbledon and the highlights at the US Open,” said Becker about his time in prison. “I was able to follow the final at the ATP Finals in Turin. So I saw the most important games,” said Becker, who last played his role as a TV expert at the Australian Open a year ago. “As far as sport is concerned, I’ve done my homework and diligently studied who wants and is allowed to play in Melbourne. In that respect I think I’m pretty well informed.”

Tennis is his “great passion”, Becker once emphasized, “and it gives me incredible pleasure to deal with my favorite sport at the highest level and to see the best of the best play, to analyze their style of play and to discuss with them”.

No trip to Australia

Now he’s back in his element – much to Angelique Kerber’s delight. “Obviously he hasn’t had an easy time. I wish him a good new start,” said Kerber, who was absent from the first Grand Slam tournament of the year because of her pregnancy, from the German Press Agency.

At the side of moderator Matthias Stach, the native of Leimen will comment on the events twice a day in the “Matchball Becker” section: in the morning at 8.45 a.m. (CET) and after the end of the competition day. In addition, Becker will act as a co-commentator in top games. The two-time Australian Open winner will not travel to Down Under, he will work from the studio in Munich. A visa would also have been difficult to obtain because of his prison sentence.

Becker has been a Eurosport expert since 2017, his contract there expires at the end of the year. He should also be used at the French Open and US Open in 2023 – but he will probably miss his favorite tournament in Wimbledon. Eurosport does not have the exclusive rights for the lawn event, and the British BBC is no longer planning to use Becker as an expert for the time being. The ex-professional could only have been added via video, after his deportation he can only return to Great Britain after his entire prison sentence has expired at the end of October 2024.

“Prison was good for me”

At the end of April 2022, Becker was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for concealing assets worth millions from his insolvency administrators. “I learned a hard lesson, a very expensive one, a very painful one,” said Becker in the Sat1 interview in mid-December. There was no celebrity bonus for him in the London prison: “I wasn’t called Boris, I was a number, and they don’t give a fuck who you are.” The difficult time there “brought him back”, he even believes, “prison was good for me”.

Behind bars, Becker worked as a kind of substitute teacher for English and mathematics. Now he can go back to the job that many experts and fans believe he does best. Before his imprisonment, Becker was popular with razor-sharp analysis of the game and profound insights into the psyche of a competitive athlete. And now? At Eurosport, they hope that Becker has lost none of his opinionated and sometimes controversial nature.

DTB is open to employment

The German tennis legend wants to give exactly that and knows that he will be the focus of attention, especially in his first appearances. “It’s being scrutinized very closely, which I’m used to. I’ll do my best to appear professional and come across,” said Becker in the Eurosport interview.

Becker has to cede around half of his income to the insolvency administrator. Nevertheless, he should be happy about activities in tennis, they give him support and joy. The German Tennis Association (DTB) always keeps the doors open for the fallen ex-star. “Boris can do whatever he wants with us,” said DTB Vice President Dirk Hordorff recently to “Sport Bild”: “He would definitely be an asset, in whatever position.” Becker also worked as Head of Men’s Tennis at DTB from 2017 to 2020.