Boris Becker quits as Holger Rune's coach after just 3 months - "I can't give what he needs now"

Six-time Major winner Boris Becker has ended his stint as Holger Rune's coach after just three months, claiming that he has "professional and private responsibilities" to attend to.

Rune, ranked 7th in the world, employed Becker as his coach in October 2023. The Dane experienced an upturn in his results soon after, reaching the latter stages of the Swiss Indoors Basel and the Paris Masters. He also qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time ever.

Holger Rune then had a good start to his 2024 season, reaching his first final in nearly eight months at the Brisbane International, where he lost to Grigor Dimitrov. The 20-year-old's progress, however, subsequently hit a roadblock as he exited in the second round of the Australian Open.

While Rune did reach the semifinals at his next tournament, the Montpellier Open, his campaign ended on a worrisome note as he retired against Borna Coric due to an arm injury. The Dane's 2024 season is now even more uncertain, as Boris Becker has left his camp prematurely.

Boris Becker took to his X (formerly Twitter) handle on Tuesday (February 6) to disclose the news to his followers. The German said he didn't have the time to "be available" for the World No. 7 due to "professional and private responsibilities."

"I would like to inform you that I will step down as the head coach of Holger Rune with immediate effect," Becker wrote on X (formerly Twitter). "We started this partnership with the initial goal to reach the ATP Finals end of last year but moving forward I realized that in order for this to be successful, I would need to be available for Holger much more than I can."

"Due to professional and private responsibilities, I can’t give Holger what he needs now. I wish him only the very best and I’m always going to be his n.1 fan. I truly appreciated this journey together," he added.

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Holger Rune's former coach Boris Becker spent eight months in prison over bankruptcy fraud case

Boris Becker at 1993 Wimbledon

Holger Rune's former coach Boris Becker served eight months in jail a few years ago, for hiding £2.5 million of assets and loans in a bankruptcy fraud case. The German had initially been sentenced to two-and-a-half-years but was released early.

Becker had gone bankrupt in June 2017 after falling into debt. The six-time Major winner had not paid a £3 million loan on one of his estates in Mallorca, following which the interest accrued to about £50 million.

While Boris Becker's financial troubles are widely publicized, his place in tennis history remains indisputable. In 1985, at the age of 17, the German became the youngest ever male player to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon. He would win five more Major titles and spend 12 weeks as the World No. 1 before retiring in 1999.