As of 1:03 p.m
“Boris Becker’s cell is six square meters – and he has to share it”
Boris Becker is being held in “one of the toughest prisons in Britain”. Arndt Striegler has details on prison conditions and talks about whether the three-time Wimbledon winner will soon be the new tennis coach in prison.
Boris Becker has been in prison since April 29. His lawyers are apparently working on a transfer. Becker temporarily loses his job as a tennis expert at Eurosport. The station has found a successor.
GJust five kilometers separate the place where Boris Becker celebrated his greatest successes from the one where he suffered his greatest defeat. The Victorian Wandsworth Prison, where the convicted ex-tennis pro was taken by security transport on April 29 after being sentenced to two and a half years in prison for delaying bankruptcy, is in south London – as is Wimbledon’s Center Court.
Becker has been in the notorious prison known for its poor condition for 13 days. However, Becker could soon be transferred to an institution with a lower security level. “I don’t expect him to stay in Wandsworth for long,” said Giles Bark-Jones, one of his attorneys. Overall, Becker should have to serve at least half of his two and a half years in prison. In theory, the 54-year-old can still appeal the verdict, but the chances of success are considered to be rather low.
It is not known how Becker is doing in detention. But it is clear that the tennis legend has lost and is losing some of his jobs. So he can no longer work as an expert for Eurosport. Becker would actually have been back in action for the TV station at the French Open, which begins on May 22nd in Paris.
According to information from “Bild”, the broadcaster has already found a successor for Becker. Mischa Zverev will replace him in front of the camera. The older brother of the currently best German tennis player Alexander Zverev takes his place alongside commentator Matthias Stach in the best matches. In addition, Zverev will lead the show “Matchball” in the Munich studio every day from 8.30 p.m., which was previously called “Matchball Becker”.
Zverev wants to “impart enthusiasm for tennis”
“In Mischa Zverev we have an expert who is not only close to the action, but has already worked for Eurosport at the Grand Slams and also accompanied the entire tennis tournament at the Olympic Games from the studio in Munich-Unterföhring for Eurosport,” says Gernot Bauer, Eurosports Head of Sports. “He knows both our team and the processes.”
Mischa Zverev ended his career in 2018. His best world ranking was 44th
Source: pa/dpa/Frank Molter
Zverev was already an expert for Eurosport during the Olympic Games in Tokyo, where his brother won the gold medal. “It will be two intensive weeks of tennis with top-class matches,” says Zverev: “I not only want to explain to the spectators the small details that can often make big differences, but also convey the enthusiasm for tennis.”
It is not yet clear whether Zverev will also be active as a TV expert beyond the French Open. Just like the way the station deals with Becker, whose contract runs until 2023.
