Beckers sign custody deal

Hamburg, January 14: Germanyâ€™s retired tennis star Boris Becker and his estranged wife Barbara have reached an out-of-c...

Hamburg, January 14: Germanyâ€™s retired tennis star Boris Becker and his estranged wife Barbara have reached an out-of-court settlement of their bitter alimony and custody dispute, a newspaper reported on Sunday.

Becker, 33, and his wife will share custody of their two sons, and she will receive a one-time payment of 30 million marks ($ 14.4 million), Bild am Sonntag newspaper said.

Barbara Becker, 34, also will be able to choose between their luxury home on Fisher Island or the villa in Munich as her residence, the newspaper said, quoting â€˜â€˜various sure sources,â€™â€™ but without naming them. Becker will pay support for the children, it said.

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Becker left Miami after the agreement was signed there on Saturday, the newspaper said.

The settlement gives Barbara Becker about six times more money than what she had been entitled to by a prenuptial contract.

If the two had not agreed, the case would have gone to a public hearing in a Miami court on January 18, something Becker has been keen to avoid.Becker, a three-time Wimbledon champion, married the daughter of an American soldier and a German mother in December 1993. They separated late last year, taking Germany by surprise. Becker has filed for divorce in Munich.

The affair has dominated tabloid news in Germany.