Boris Becker is not expected to be involved in BBC’s Wimbledon coverage this summer, but has secured his first pundit role since recently being freed from prison after serving time for bankruptcy offences.
It was confirmed on Tuesday that the former world number one turned commentator will return to provide analysis for the upcoming Australian Open on the German-language Eurosport channel.
He will lead the Matchball Becker programme alongside presenter Matthias Stach and will occasionally contribute to the international coverage.
However, the BBC currently has no plans to work with the three-time Wimbledon champion on their coverage of the British tournament this summer, the PA news agency understands.
Becker began working for the BBC in 2002 after retiring from play three years earlier and has commentated on many high-profile matches and finals.
Last month, the 55-year-old was deported to his native Germany after serving eight months in British jails.
He was jailed for two-and-a-half years in April for hiding £2.5 million of assets and loans to avoid paying debts.
The tennis star was declared bankrupt on June 21, 2017 – owing creditors almost £50 million – over an unpaid loan of more than £3 million on his estate in Majorca.
In May, Becker is said to have been transferred to a lower security jail for foreign criminals awaiting deportation – the category C Huntercombe Prison near Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire – after previously reportedly being held at the category B Wandsworth Prison in south-west London.
The six-time grand slam winner qualified for automatic deportation because he is a foreign national without British citizenship and was jailed for more than 12 months.
