Boris Becker has been declared bankrupt. Photo/Getty Images
Tennis legend Boris Becker has insisted that he is not bankrupt, after proceedings were brought against him over his failure to pay millions of pounds in debt.
The three-time Wimbledon champion, 49, took to Twitter to say he was "surprised and disappointed" by the bankruptcy proceedings, declaring he has the "means to repay this debt".
Becker, who as not present at the hearing, was accused of burying his "head in the sand" by a judge after it was heard he owed a "substantial" sum of money, according to Daily Mail.
He was declared bankrupt following a 30 minute hearing at the Bankruptcy and Companies Court in London on Wednesday.
The court ruled he would have to sell his nine-bedroom palatial home in Spain to settle his finances.
Becker - who was pictured outside private gambling club Crown Aspinall's in Mayfair in May - later took to social media to declare that he would apply to have the order set aside.
Writing on Twitter, he said: "Surprised and disappointed that Arbuthnot Latham choose to bring these proceedings against me!
"This order relates to 1 disputed loan which I was due to repay in full in 1 month time!
"It is disappointing that my requested (sic) for today's hearing to be postponed was refused!
"My earnings are well publicised and it was ... clear that I have the means to repay this debt!
"The value of the asset in question far exceeds the debt owed to bank! I intend to make application to have this order set aside immediately!"
He continued: "In the meantime I will concentrate on my work and in particular my presenting duties at Wimbledon for the BBC and other international outlets!
"To all my fans/supporters/followers: Truly appreciate all your kind words!!! I have been in this game for 32 years and intend to stay longer."
Becker's lawyers had argued there was sufficient evidence to show that the tennis ace would be able to pay the debt soon through a refinancing arrangement, involving remortgaging a property in Majorca, which was expected to raise six million euro ($9.2m).
But Matthew Abraham, for Arbuthnot Latham, the merchant banking firm that applied for the bankruptcy order, said the case had already been put off after an initial hearing on April 28.
Abraham added that there was no "credible" evidence the six million euro property package would materialise.
Registrar Christine Derrett said she was "not persuaded that the evidence before me can be described as credible evidence".
"In these circumstances, and with a degree of regret, I'm afraid that I do not agree to the request for an adjournment.
"I am therefore satisfied that the necessary papers are in order and I make this bankruptcy order."
During the hearing, the judge said of Becker: "One has the impression of a man rather burying his head in the sand".
His barrister, John Briggs, told the court he is "not a sophisticated person when it comes to finances".
Becker is now working as a commentator, but the judge said there was "no evidence of other personal assets sufficient to discharge the debt".
The judge said: "I know exactly who he is. I remember watching him play at Centre Court many years ago, which probably shows my age.
Briggs said the bankruptcy order might affect the tennis star's global image. It was therefore in his interests to take urgent steps to meet the bank debt.
"He should have thought of that a long time ago," the judge chipped in. The "judgment debt" had been hanging over him since October 2015, she added.
There was no mention of the sum owed by Becker, beyond it being "substantial".
Becker, who was once reputedly worth $35million, stunned the world back in 1985 when he became the youngest player to win Wimbledon at 17.
He went on to rack up six grand slams and romanced a succession of exotic beauties.
Becker has endured a number of financial setbacks in the past, having to pay divorce and paternity settlements totaling more than £20 million ($34 million) to his first wife, Barbara, and Angela Ermakova, the Russian model who had his baby after a fling in London nightspot Nobu in 1999.
His ex-wife took the couple's £1.8million ($3.1m) home in Florida during the divorce, while Becker was also forced to splash £1million ($1.7m) on a central London flat for his Ermakova and her mother.
In 2012 a judge ordered Becker to auction off his villa in Palma, Spain, so that £225,000 ($393,000) of the profits can be set aside to pay a long-standing debt to owe a local landscape gardening company.
The nine-bedroom mansion, set across 62 acres, was taken out of his hands by the Spanish Government but he later took repossession of the property after repaying his bill.
Becker's financial problems saw him suffer a brush with the law when he was slapped with suspended sentence after being found guilty of tax evasion in his native Germany in 2002.
The former tennis star admitted evading around 1.7 million euros ($2.6m) in tax by claiming to live "offshore" in Monte Carlo, a tax haven, when his main residence was in Munich.
He was fined 500,000 euros ($766,000m) and given two years in prison, suspended for three years.