Draper: Top 10 the result of hard work, growing belief and increasing confidence
The Briton will be in the top 10 for the first time on Monday after reaching the final in Indian Wells, where he plays Holger Rune for the title
Tristan Lapierre
Jack Draper‘s victory over Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-finals of the BNP Paribas Open gives the Briton the chance to win his first Masters 1000 title, if he can get the better of Holger Rune on Sunday night.
But regardless of what happens in the final, the Briton will be a top 10 player for the first time in his career, the reward for enormous hard work, belief and growing confidence thanks to a series of good results in the past year.
His win over an out of sorts Alcaraz was testament to how far he’s come, with the Spaniard reiterating that he always knew Draper had the game to be in the top 10.
“In January when I played him in Australia and he had to retire. I said, ‘you will be where you deserve’,” Alcaraz said. “And he deserves to be top 10. He deserves to play a final in the Masters 1000. I am happy about him because I didn’t doubt about his level, about himself.
“He’s ready to stay there for a long time. He’s ready to play for the big events, for the big tournaments. I didn’t surprise about what I see today. Just it wasn’t an easy match for him, playing for the top 10, playing for the first Masters 1000 final, and I think he did great. He dealt with the nerves better than I did. So great to him and all the best in the final.”
Draper: “I’ve been through a lot in my few years”
For much of the early part of his career, Draper was beset by doubts, mostly because his body kept breaking down, with several injuries interrupting his progress.
But he never gave up belief, worked even harder off the court and on it, has grown in confidence after finally realising he had what it takes to compete at the very top level. When he won the final point against Alcaraz, he said, it was: “relief, joy, just a huge feeling of big emotion”.
“I have been through a lot in my few years with playing and especially the last ones with some injuries, and a lot of hard work to sort of always try and get back to a decent level.
“After I won my first title in Stuttgart (last July), I started to feel more confident in myself. I think a big part of being a young player is feeling like you belong. Obviously you go in the changing rooms and you’re seeing all the players you have watched on TV and all the players you admire. You know, you kind of feel like, am I good enough to be here?
“So winning a couple of titles last year and making the semis of the US (Open), that really helped me to believe that I could be right up there at the top of the game as well, and making top 20 at the end of last year.”
Five-set wins at Australian Open
Wining three five-set matches in a row at the Australian Open, even if he then had to retire against Alcaraz, was testament to the work he’s put in.
“Then…making a final in Doha, I feel like the consistency of what I’m trying to do on the tennis court is improving all the time at the highest level,” he said. “That’s given me so much confidence.
“I’d say it’s just kind of experience at the highest level against the top players and the confidence I’m getting from that, which has helped me to get to this point.”
Reaching the Indian Wells final means he will be ranked at least No 9 on Monday, while a win over Rune would put him up an extra place at No 8.
“I feel incredible obviously to beat Carlos in this sort of stage in the tournament on that court,” Draper said. “You know, I have watched the top players in the world play on that court for many, many years now, and it feels amazing, honestly, both those things.
“Obviously I’ve got one more to go, so all my sort of feelings and emotions on that, but obviously very proud of myself and the achievement.”
Rune won their only previous battle, in Cincinnati last year and the Dane has looked impressive throughout the event, seeing off Daniil Medvedev to make the final.
But Draper said he was looking forward to the challenge.
“I’ll make sure I look after my recovery, not thinking about too much,” he said. “That’s the thing with tennis. You’ve got to get over wins like today, and all my focus and energy is on making sure that I do all the right things to give myself the best chance to win the tournament tomorrow.”
