Boris Becker has revealed he is honoured to pave way for the younger generation as the German revealed the secrets behind being world number one.
It was in 1991 when Becker spent 12 weeks at world number one in an incredible career which saw him claim six Grand Slam titles.
Towards the end of last year Becker was one of the first members inducted into the ATP’s number one club.
Speaking on the achievement Becker spoke about paving the way for the new generation of players as he spoke about the ‘honour’ he has in his current role, “Looking back, I was very honoured to present the No. 1 trophy to Jannik Sinner [in 2024] and to be part of this No. 1 Club,” Becker exclusively told the ATP website.
“All the other 28 players were heroes of mine. The reason I played was because of all these players. To be amongst this small group of players is very special, very unique. Everything you have is because of the game of tennis, and you appreciate it more now than when you’re in the middle of the storm.
“It’s very important for the young generation, to remind them who paved the way. We weren’t always playing for millions of dollars of prize money, but because of the success of an Ilie Nastase, John Newcombe, Bjorn Borg, John McEnroe — you name it — tennis became more and more popular.”
Becker played his part in a crucial period for the ATP and tennis in general as he created some epic rivalries along the way.
It was those rivalries that made him the star that he is but the German had to make a lot of sacrifices to be world number one.
Speaking about the secrets to being world number one Becker admitted you have to be a bit ‘crazy’ to achieve the feat, “You have to be a little bit crazy, a little bit egotistic in the sense that your life is tennis. To be willing to do what it takes, your whole life has to be about tennis,” Becker explained.
“There can’t be anything [more] important than winning the next tennis match. To keep that intensity for a long time is difficult, but I think we all have this crazy mentality of doing what it takes to win the match. It’s a great achievement [reaching No. 1], whether it’s one week, 12 weeks, or 350 weeks.
“The trick is consistency, week in, week out. To always reach the final or win the tournaments, that’s ultimately what gets you [there] and makes you stay No. 1. In the 80s, I was still a teenager. I had great tournaments, but then I had average weeks. Ivan, Mats [Wilander] and Stefan [Edberg] were more consistent over 52 weeks. That changed in the early 90s.”
