“The Power” Draper edges into UTS Grand Final, defeats Ruud

Jack “The Power” Draper got the better of three quarters – all of which went to a deciding point – and beat Casper “The Ice Man” Ruud to reach the UTS Grand Final – 14-13, 12-11, 14-13.

“Wow…I think I got lucky a little bit towards the end,” admitted Draper afterwards.

He now faces Holger Rune – the man he beat in three straight quarters on Friday night – for the crown.

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The Brit – who received a wild card into the event – had dropped only one quarter through the round-robin stages in London, topping Group B with a huge points average of +48.

But The Ice Man had clearly done his prep, and had Draper moving the width of the court, luring him into wild shots.

Draper: I came up with good shots

Ruud took the lead in the first quarter, winning four points on the spin to give himself an 8-5 advantage, but The Power was not to be denied, using his long levers well to turn it around and take it 14-13 – despite The Ice Man piling on the pressure in the quarter point stage, particularly with a powerful body shot.

And Ruud came out firing in the second quarter, leading 11-9 at the quarter point stage. But Draper wasn’t about to let his great record slip, and won the next three points to take it 12-11 – much to the delight of his ever-vocal coach James Trotman.

“I came up with some really good shots when I needed to,” said Draper.

And in the third quarter The Power pounced on service errors from The Ice Man – and combined that with the smartest of forehands. Ruud used his bonus card to get back in it, leading 13-11 before heading into the quarter point.

But once again The Power refused to be denied, winning the next three points to seal his place in the final.

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