New British No1 Jack Draper sends tennis world Wimbledon warning as he beats Carlos Alcaraz in career-best victory
JACK DRAPER has marked his first week as British No1 by achieving the biggest win of his career over Carlos Alcaraz.
The world No31 beat the Spaniard 7-6(3), 6-3 to move into the quarter-finals at the Queen’s Club.
Draper won his first ATP title last week, beating former Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini to lift the Stuttgart Open.
His triumph saw him leapfrog Cameron Norrie in the ATP rankings, becoming the latest man to hold the honour of being British No1.
Barely 48 hours after his win over Berrettini, Draper was back in action at the Queen’s Club.
The 6ft 4in star brushed aside Mariano Navone 6-3, 6-2 in round one on Tuesday, on what was the Argentine’s first ever match on grass.
Draper’s comfortable victory set up a mouthwatering clash with reigning champion Alcaraz, which did not disappoint.
The task was a tall one, with Roland Garros champion Alcaraz on an eight match winning streak, and having not lost on grass since a round four defeat to Jannik Sinner at Wimbledon in 2022.
Draper kept Alcaraz at bay in the first set, booming his lefty serve down in an opening stanza that did not feature a single break point for either man.
He subsequently held his nerve to take the tiebreak 7-3 in front of a jubilant home crowd.
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The match’s first break point finally came with Alcaraz serving at 2-3 in the second set, with Draper directing a return down the line to convert it.
Now getting a read on the three-time major champion’s serve, Draper set up three match points chances during Alcaraz’s next service game.
The reigning Wimbledon champion saved them all to force Draper to serve out his victory.
And that’s just what he did, serving it out to secure what, by ranking, is the best win of his career.
Alcaraz is currently the world No2, only behind Sinner.
Draper’s previous best win by ranking came against then No5 Stefanos Tsitsipas in Canada two years ago.
After his triumph, Draper said: “It was a really tough match. Carlos is the defending champion, he won Wimbledon, he’s an incredible talent and amazing for the sport.
“I had to come out and play well and luckily I did.
“There’s no place I’d rather be right now, with my family, my friends and the British support. I’ve got my granddad here, who’s just turned 80, he’s doing well.”
‘I’M NOT TOO GOOD RIGHT NOW’
Alcaraz later admitted that he did not perform to his standards, but was quick to give credit to Draper.
He said: “I’m not too good right now. I felt like I didn’t play well, I didn’t move well.
“Of course I have to give credit to Jack. I think he played really good tennis today.”
Draper will face American Tommy Paul in tomorrow’s quarter-finals, after the fifth seed beat Alejandro Tabilo 6-3, 6-4 in the first match of the day.
And he has been joined in the last eight by fellow Brit Billy Harris.
The 29-year-old has never played a grand slam main draw match, having primarily spent his career on the ITF and ATP Challenger Tours.
Harris, who hails from the Isle of Man, has enjoyed a good year to date – earning recent semi-final berths in Surbiton and Nottingham.
His form saw him earn a wildcard at Queen’s ahead of two-time former champion Berrettini, who has had to head to Halle this week instead.
And he has grabbed the opportunity with both hands, beating Tomas Martin Etcheverry and exciting French youngster Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard to reach the last eight.