Boris Becker snubbed by the BBC as tennis icon sees Wimbledon hopes end - The Mirror

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.

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.