close
close

Ourladyoftheassumptionparish

Part – Newstatenabenn

Jack Draper: how the British number one has transformed his career
patheur

Jack Draper: how the British number one has transformed his career

At the Challenger event in Bergamo last October, Draper had just returned to the top 100 in the world, an important marker on the professional circuits and the direct gateway to Grand Slam events.

He lamented the “brutal” nature of a sport in which he had begun to develop his potential only to suffer another setback with a shoulder injury.

“I was ranked 40th in the world, I got injured and my ranking completely dropped. I came back to play Challengers and I felt angry,” Draper said.

“But I knew that if I could get my body and mind in a good place, my tennis would be good enough to compete with the best players in the world.”

This year, he has demonstrated it by:

  • win a first ATP Tour title: a 250 event in Stuttgart

  • reaching his first Grand Slam semi-final, at the US Open

  • Reaching the top 20 of the ATP world ranking

  • becoming the fourth Briton since 2009 to win an ATP 500 title

“It’s been a long year with a lot of ups and downs,” Draper said.

“But winning my first title, then the US Open, has been instrumental in really believing that I belong.

“It’s been a snowball effect ever since.”