Boris Becker Goes From Boom to Bust

When Boris Becker was discovered to have had a five-second sexual encounter in the broom cupboard of a top London restaurant, the ex-Wimbledon champion probably thought life could not get any worse, but it did yesterday.

The tax authorities in his native Germany announced they were charging the former national hero with tax evasion.

The stunning news is the latest blow to the former tennis star, whose life has descended into an embarrassing and expensive shambles since he retired in 1999. He has seen business ventures fail, his halo replaced by a string of cruel jokes and his marriage fall apart because of the notorious - and brief - liaison with a woman he had just met.

German prosecutors said they had brought charges against Becker, 34, relating to millions of pounds in taxes he allegedly dodged while he was at the height of his fame. 'There is sufficient reason to suspect tax offences,' said Manfred Wick, the head of the Munich public prosecutor's office. Wick declined to give further details of the alleged offences but Becker is reported to be accused of failing to pay £3.2 million. Munich's district court will now decide whether the charges should proceed to court. If it does Becker faces a fine and a possible stretch in jail.

Becker was an unknown, red-haired 17-year-old when in 1985 he became the first unseeded player, and the youngest contestant, ever to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon. Christened Boom-Boom because of his powerful serve, he entranced men and women alike with his talent.

For years after, Boris Becker seemed to be the sporting icon who had it all: domination of men's tennis, millions of adoring admirers, an estimated £200m fortune, a luxury home in Monte Carlo, a beautiful wife and two children.

Yesterday's charges follow a long-running investigation by German tax inspectors into the ex-star's financial affairs, which has led many of his fans to revise their opinion of a man who, along with Steffi Graf, ruled tennis with awesome authority.

The authorities claim Becker pretended to be living in the tax haven of Monaco during 1985-1993 when he was actually resident in Germany. He may have avoided as much as £10m in tax on the huge sums he was earning in prize money, endorsements and appearance fees.

The fame that helped Becker rake in so much from tennis has now begun to hurt him. Germany tax officials began probing his affairs when one of their colleagues had a chance encounter on a train with a tax expert who boasted about all the tax avoidance schemes he was working on for the three-times Wimbledon winner.

Ironically, much of their evidence came from Hans-Gerd Graffmann, who is perhaps Becker's biggest fan. During the player's heyday, 76-year-old Graffmann put together detailed scrapbooks charting the star's every move. The collections of newspaper cuttings, which were taken from the headquarters of the German tennis association, provided valuable evidence that Becker had spent far more time back home in Germany than he claimed when filling in his annual tax returns.

Becker's life began falling apart early in July 1999. Beaten by Australian rival Pat Rafter in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon, an event in which he had made the final six times, the German announced his retirement at the age of 31. That night, at the Nobu restaurant in Mayfair, he had sex with a young Russian model called Angela Ermakova. While she gushed that he made her feel like 'Cinderella in a wonderful dream', he famously described it as 'the most expensive five seconds of my life'.

He initially denied fathering the blond, blue-eyed daughter who looks so much like him, but in a High Court settlement eventually agreed to give her a £2m lump sum and £25,000-a-month in maintenance.

That indiscretion wrecked his seven-year marriage to Barbara Felthus, the mother of their sons Noah and Elias. They endured an acrimonious split in 2000, amid rumours of other infidelities involving him, and divorced in 2001. He agreed a £15m settlement with her which saw her get custody of their children.

He was in London until last week acting as a commentator and analyst for the BBC during the championship fortnight. Graf, was also pursued by the tax authorities. In 1982, her father Peter, who managed her, was jailed for three years and nine months for tax evasion.