Jack Draper has won ATP titles in Stuttgart and Vienna as well as reaching the semi-finals of the US Open; Watch all the ATP and WTA action on Sky Sports Tennis and Sky Sports+ which is integrated into Sky TV, streaming service NOW and the Sky Sports app
Sunday 3 November 2024 12:38, UK
Jack Draper is Britain's next generation at the age of 22 having enjoyed a remarkable 2024 in which he has won two ATP titles and reached the US Open semi-finals. So what's next for the talented boy from Sutton?
Draper celebrated his second ATP title following a tense straight-sets victory over Karen Khachanov in the final of the Erste Bank Open in Vienna on Sunday.
He became the fourth British player to triumph at the tournament, following in the footsteps of Greg Rusedski, Tim Henman and two-time winner Andy Murray.
Having already guaranteed a top-15 ranking with his performances this week, Draper will now target Masters 1000 and Grand Slams in 2025.
Draper reached his maiden ATP Tour final in Sofia last November, where he narrowly lost to France's Adrian Mannarino 7-6 (8-6) 2-6 6-3.
He picked up where he left off at the start of 2024 - defeating three top-40 players to make his second ATP final in Adelaide, but once again finished as runner-up, this time to Jiri Lehecka.
Draper then reached his third ATP final - this time on grass in Stuttgart - in June and after wins over Frances Tiafoe, Marcos Giron and Brandon Nakashima he defeated former Wimbledon runner-up Matteo Berrettini to make it third-time lucky.
He battled back from a set down to beat the Italian 3-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-4.
The win also meant that he overtook Cameron Norrie to become the 19th man to be British No 1 in the Open era.
At Queen's Club, he upset Spanish superstar Carlos Alcaraz in the second round and he then made his maiden Grand Slam semi-final at the US Open where he went toe-to-toe with world No 1 Jannik Sinner before bowing out 7-5 7-6 (7-3) 6-2.
The British No 1 secured his first ATP 500 title thanks to a gruelling 6-4 7-5 victory against world No 24 Khachanov in Vienna to reach new heights.
The left hander, who is naturally right-handed, was ranked 123rd in the world in September last year but he will become a top 15 player on Monday.
Draper was sick immediately after securing victory in the Australian Open first round back in January, putting that down to the stress of the situation, while he vomited three times on court during his defeat by Sinner at Flushing Meadows.
"I push my body to the limit all the time in training and in my mindset. I don't have to worry about sort of not doing enough because I am, which points to the fact that a lot of issues I have are mental," said Draper.
"I am going to have to work on that and really understand myself better in order to compete at these highest levels.
"I'm sure I'll figure out all these problems with my team, but yeah, it's good that I'm sort of not the finished article yet."
He added: "I think working on the mental side of the game is a huge thing.
"I'll definitely just look into that side a little bit more. You know, I'm constantly working on my breathing, working on things."
He has managed to stay injury-free before retiring during the ATP Tour event in Tokyo last month after sustaining an abdominal issue, which also caused him to miss the Shanghai Masters.
"I knew coming here [Vienna] I was on good form but I wasn't too sure how my body was," said Draper.
"The nature of tennis is brutal because (last year) I was 40 in the world and I got injured for a couple of months and my ranking completely dropped.
"I was back playing Challengers and I felt angry, I wasn't happy with where I was at. I was working hard but things just weren't clicking for me.
"I knew if I could just get my body and mind in a good place then my tennis is good enough to play these best players in the world and by having these type of results I've got this inner belief now."
Draper started playing at his local Sutton Tennis & Squash club, competing with his brother under the tutelage of his mother and tennis coach, Nicky, who was a former junior British Tennis Champion.
As a coach at the club, his mother brought Jack along to his first training session at the age of six.
Draper peaked at No 7 in the ITF junior world rankings, aided by his runner-up finish at the 2018 Wimbledon boys' singles event.
His dad Roger is a former chief executive of Sport England and the Lawn Tennis Association.
LTA National Coach James Trotman at the National Tennis Centre, although he recently trialled a potential second coach when hiring Wayne Ferreira in an effort to jump-start his career.
Trotman is a former player himself, winning the 1995 Wimbledon Championships boys doubles with Martin Lee and the 1997 Australian Open boys doubles with David Sherwood.
At 6ft 4in the strapping Draper is not just a tennis professional but he also turns his hand to modelling from time to time.
"I quite enjoy being in front of the camera," Draper told British Vogue. "If I'm looking good, that is."
Draper has come a long way from the Surrey village of Ashtead.
Speaking about his haircuts, he said: "I've done a buzzcut, mohawk, mullet..."
Draper plans to enter the Paris Masters this week and, following a break in the tennis calendar he has his sights set on challenging Sinner and Alcaraz.
"I'll refresh and I'll go again for next year with even bigger motivation to really shake up those guys at the top of the game - the likes of Sinner and Alcaraz," he said.
"If I can keep on improving physically and keep on getting more and more experience at this higher level against top players then I'm going to give myself a shot to hopefully be competing with those guys.
"But there's a lot of work to do."
Sky Sports' Raz Mirza
Draper has grown into his own having suffered the heartbreak of losing a couple of finals before finally landing his maiden title on the grass in Stuttgart.
From that moment onwards he has been able to play consistent tennis which had aided his performances. If he overcomes those bouts of sickness then there is little doubt we will see him challenging the leading stars in 2025.
After reaching the semi-finals in New York, Draper knows he has the ability to win Masters 1000 titles and potentially follow in Andy Murray's footsteps by becoming a future Grand Slam champion.
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