Draper overcomes Berrettini to reach Doha semi-finals

Jack Draper came back from a set down to beat Matteo Berrettini in the Doha quarter-finals on Thursday. Draper will face Jiri Lehecka for a place in the title match.

Jack Draper, Australian Open, 2025 © Rachel Bach/Shutterstock/SIPA

Ricky Dimon

February 20, 2025

Jack Draper is into the semi-finals of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open after defeating Matteo Berrettini 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 on Thursday. Draper advanced after two hours and 22 minutes.

The 23-year-old Brit missed his first 11 break-point chances of the match before finally converting each of his last two. Draper’s first success came on a set point in the second with Berrettini serving at 4-5 and the next capitalisation came for a 3-2 lead in the third.

“I thought (in) the first set obviously I played quite a sloppy game to get broken,” Draper reflected during an on-court interview. “But credit to Matteo; he served it out incredibly well. I felt in the second set like I was knocking on the door, getting my opportunities but not quite taking [them]. But I stayed strong I know Matteo had a tough match last night. I’m really proud of my physicality and mentality to stay strong and come through that match, especially at the end there.”

The left-hander’s reward is a Friday showdown against Jiri Lehecka, who upset top seed Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals.

Draper was asked if he was surprised by Lehecka’s victory over Alcaraz.

“Jiri’s obviously having a great start to the season,” Doha’s No 8 seed noted. “There’s so many great players in this draw — Jiri being one of them. He’s confident; he’s playing well. Anything can happen at this level; the margins are so small. It’s going to be a great match tomorrow and hopefully I can get through.”