Boris Becker almost became Jannik Sinner’s coach back in 2022. If that had happened, we might never have seen the incredible partnership between Sinner and Darren Cahill that’s taken the tennis world by storm.
Becker was already a proven coach before this opportunity came up. He’d worked with Novak Djokovic for three years and helped him win six Grand Slams during that time.
That’s pretty impressive when you consider Djokovic was struggling before Becker came along – he’d lost four out of five major finals before the German coach helped turn things around.
| Name | Age | Points | Stats 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jannik Sinner | 24 | 15,405 | 33 - 3 |
But Becker’s coaching career has been limited. After Djokovic, he had a brief stint with Holger Rune that ended early in 2024. The six-time Grand Slam champion realized he just couldn’t handle all the traveling that comes with coaching at the top level.
A Secret Almost Revealed
Now Becker’s revealed something that tennis fans had no idea about. In a recent interview with Corriere della Sera, he admitted he was actually offered the chance to coach Sinner two years ago.
The problem? His bankruptcy case was hanging over his head, and he knew a prison sentence was possible.
“I thought it was a secret… I never talked about it. It’s true. Two months later, I was waiting for the London ruling (in his bankruptcy case). I told Jannik: I don’t know how it’ll end, I can’t make the commitment. But I didn’t want to leave him stranded, so I gave him a couple of names: one was Darren Cahill. For me, the best.”
Becker’s instincts were right to be worried. On April 8th, 2022, he was found guilty of hiding assets and trophies worth £2.5 million during his bankruptcy proceedings.
He got a 30-month prison sentence but only served eight months before being released.
You’ve got to give Becker credit here. He could’ve taken the job and hoped for the best, but instead he put Sinner’s career first. That’s pretty classy, especially considering how much the coaching role probably would’ve meant to him.
And honestly, it turned out to be the right call for everyone involved.
Dodging a Bullet
Sinner’s already had to deal with enough controversy. His high-profile doping case created months of stress before he ultimately served a three-month suspension.
Can you imagine if he’d also had to deal with questions about his coach’s criminal conviction? The media circus would’ve been intense.
Meanwhile, Cahill’s been absolutely perfect for Sinner’s development. The Australian coach has an incredible track record – he helped Andre Agassi, Lleyton Hewitt, and Simona Halep all win Grand Slams.
More importantly, he and Sinner have developed one of the closest player-coach relationships tennis has ever seen.
What About Zverev?
There were always rumors floating around that Becker might end up coaching Alexander Zverev. It made sense – they’re both German, and many people think Zverev needs a coach with Grand Slam experience.
But that relationship’s completely broken down now.
Becker’s made some really harsh comments about Zverev’s mentality over the years. The Olympic gold medalist isn’t happy about it and says he doesn’t understand why Becker seems to dislike him so much these days.
Instead, Zverev’s been working with Toni Nadal recently. After training at the Nadal Academy following Wimbledon 2025, there were rumors Toni might become his permanent coach.
The problem is Toni’s pretty committed to his nephew Rafael’s academy, which makes a full-time coaching role complicated.
It’s funny how these coaching decisions work out sometimes. Becker’s legal troubles probably saved Sinner from a lot of headaches and led him straight to the perfect coach. Sometimes the best opportunities come from saying no to the wrong ones.
