Former German tennis player Boris Becker said he regrets becoming Wimbledon champion at the age of 17, because he was not ready for the fame and great expectations that followed.
"I'm glad I won it three times, but at 17 it was perhaps too early. I was still a child," Becker (57) told the BBC.
In 1985, Becker defeated Kevin Karen in the final and became the youngest winner of Wimbledon, a tournament considered the most prestigious in the tennis world.
"I had too much money. Nobody told me 'no'. Anything was possible. Now, from this perspective, it was a recipe for disaster," added the legendary German, who won six Grand Slam trophies during his career.
Off the field, Becker led a turbulent life plagued by personal problems and financial difficulties.
In 2022, he spent eight months in an English prison, after being sentenced to two and a half years for hiding assets worth €2,9 million to avoid paying debts.
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