Boris Becker insists his bankruptcy is a "misunderstanding".
The former tennis ace was declared bankrupt in June after not paying back an undisclosed debt to a private bank, but the 50-year-old sportsman is now "in a position" to settle the bill, and claims the situation arose because of a dispute over the interest he owes.
He said: "I am in a position to settle to an amount that I owe.
"It’s a bit like if you go to a restaurant and order a chicken sandwich and a cola and the bill is £10,000. I’d like to go over the bill with the restaurant owner and that chance hasn’t been given to me. That’s why I call this a big misunderstanding. I’m not running away. I live in the middle of London. I’m not hiding."
If Boris doesn’t pay, the debt is cleared next June and he is declared bankrupt , but it will be annulled if the dispute is settled and he admits it is "important" for him to reach a resolution.
He said: "I would like to have an annulment. It’s important to me.
""I could sit it out and say, ‘My doctor is telling me I need a holiday; my wife hasn’t seen me much.’ "Theoretically I could do that, but that is the last thing I want to do. To clarify, I want to settle the bill and move on with my life."
And the former Wimbledon champion – who has children Noah, 23 and Elias, 18, with ex-wife Barbara Feltus, Anna, 17, from a fling with model Angela Ermakova, and Amadeus, seven, with wife Lilly – takes "full responsibility" for his financial situation.
He said: "Ultimately it is my fault. I take full responsibility of where I am today. It shouldn’t have come this far. But I am only half the story. If the bank would have played doubles with me, I wouldn’t be sitting here talking to you."
Despite his personal problems, Boris insists he wouldn’t trade his situation for the world.
He told The Times newspaper: "If you would have told me when I was 10 years old that I would win Wimbledon at 17 and that I’d become the best tennis player in the world, but there’s a price to pay, that I couldn’t just take and not give? Today, I tell you I would do it exactly the same."
Boris Becker: Bankruptcy was a ‘misunderstanding’
