Jack Draper is a 16-year-old tennis player who was the Wimbledon runner-up in the junior’s boys singles tournament and he is back in the news by entering the top 1000 in the ATP Rankings.
How did he manage to do that? Well, Draper just triumphed at a Futures title, his first ever, that was played in Nottingham, which means he becomes the only 16-year-old player in the top-1000 men’s rankings.
Draper, who is born in Surrey, overcame the challenge from his countryman Andrew Watson and won in three sets, 3-6, 7-6, (7-3), 6-0 in the Nottingham title-decider, also called the Nottingham GB Pro Series.
He was earlier expected to play in the US Open juniors singles event but opted to withdraw from it to take part in this Nottingham competition.
Earlier, Draper had needed to take inspiration from Andy Murray in his juniors Wimbledon semi-final win that needed him 36 games in the final set before he could finally smile. And the Murray connection comes from the fact he had watched his idol play and emulated his never-give-up approach during the dying moments of that encounter.
Draper, whose mother was a coach and took him along to the tennis club when he was just three, picked up the racquet at that age and hit balls against the brick wall.
And with Draper’s dad Roger being a former chief executive of the Lawn Tennis Association, the pressure might be squarely on Jack’s shoulder but that’s not how he sees it.
After losing in the junior’s Wimbledon’s final, he had said, “I don’t feel any added pressure. I know I have to just keep my feet on the ground and keep working day in, day out.” He sure looks like a player to watch out for.
Interestingly, his opponent at the Wimbledon final, Tseng Chun-hsin is 17 and is currently in the top 500 of the ATP Rankings. He has been on a bit of a roll himself, winning the juniors French Open and Wimbledon title, and being the finalist at the Australian Open too.
Chun-hsin participated in the juniors US Open competition too and made it to the semi-final there.
Be the first to comment