Boris Becker: Tennis superstar who struggled off the court

Boris Becker became an overnight sensation when he won Wimbledon as an unknown teenager but personal and financial troubles have dogged him since he hung up his racquet. Victory for the 17-year-old German at the All England Club in 1985 made him the youngest male player ever to win the tournament and was the start of an enduring love affair with the Centre Court crowd. Nicknamed "Boom, Boom" for his ferocious serve, he won Wimbledon again the following year and lifted four more Grand Slam trophies in a sparkling career that brought him 49 singles titles and career earnings of $50 million.

Becker retired from playing in 1999 but remained a high-profile figure in the game with a commentary job for the BBC, before switching paths to coach Novak Djokovic to six Grand Slam titles between 2014 and 2016. But despite the riches he earned during his career, he was declared bankrupt in 2017. Now the 54-year-old is beginning a jail sentence in Britain after being found guilty of hiding £2.5 million ($3 million) worth of assets and loans to avoid paying his debts.

Born in Leimen in south-west Germany in November 1967, Becker took up tennis as a child when his father built a tennis centre in the town. The teenager turned professional in 1984 and caught the world's imagination a year later by beating Kevin Curren in the Wimbledon men's final at the tender age of 17 years and seven months. The towering red-headed phenomenon captivated crowds with his explosive serve-and-volley tennis, not afraid to dive full-length for the ball on the Wimbledon grass.