Martina Navratilova: Boris Becker made ‘bad mistakes’ that led to jail

Tennis icon Martina Navratilova has said jailed Wimbledon and Australian Open champion Boris Becker made “bad mistakes” that led to his downfall.

Tennis champ Martina Navratilova has weighed in on Boris Becker being sentenced to jail for hiding millions of dollars from debt collectors.

The nine-time Wimbledon winner appeared on Piers Morgan Uncensored, available to stream on Flash, where she told the host Becker had “made some bad mistakes”.

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“Boris had some really bad advice and then he made some really bad decisions,” the tennis legend said on the Sky News show.

“And now he’s paying as high a price as you can. I just hope that he’ll be okay and then he’ll come out all right on the other side.

“My heart goes out to him and his family. He made some really bad mistakes and he’s paying for him dearly.”

Former tennis player Boris Becker arrives at Southwark Crown Court in London on April 29, 2022. He has since been jailed. (Photo by Adrian DENNIS / AFP)

‘He should have been smarter’

Navratilova added it wasn’t Becker’s fault as much as it was of his advisers but “he should have been smarter than that”.

“He didn’t hurt anybody. He was just trying to save his own property, but that doesn’t excuse obviously, shirking tax, etc,” she said.

“As tennis players, we depend on other people to tell us what’s right, what’s wrong, lawyers, (accountants), etc.

“I’ve gotten some really lousy advice over the years, nothing illegal, but lost lots of money because you depend on these people to do their job so you can do yours.

“Not to excuse what Boris did. Again, he’s paying dearly and I just hope his family survives it intact and most of all Boris does because it is really rough.”

Tennis legend Martina Navratilova in Melbourne in 2019. Photo Fiona Hamilton/Tennis Australia

Last month, the fallen tennis champ was found guilty of four charges under the UK’s Insolvency Act and cleared of 20 other counts.

He denied breaking UK insolvency laws following his bankruptcy but was convicted of hiding $A4.5 million worth of assets and loans to avoid paying his debts.

Over the weekend, the 54-year-old spent the first weekend of his term at Wandsworth prison in southwest London and he will have to serve at least 15 months behind bars before being eligible for release.

– with The Sun