Jack Draper: From fears he wasn’t cut out for tennis to grand slam semi-finalist

Jack Draper has not taken long to fill the hole left by Andy Murray in British tennis.

In the first grand slam since Murray ended his stellar career, Draper is two wins away from winning a maiden grand slam after cruising into the semi-finals of the US Open without dropping a set.

The 22-year-old has always been a player of huge potential, but even he expressed doubts about whether he could make it to the top.

A life in tennis always seemed inevitable considering his father Roger was the chief executive of the Lawn Tennis Association between 2006 and 2013 and his mother Nicky was an accomplished junior player.

A run to the Wimbledon boys’ final in 2018 showcased his full potential but his transition on to the professional tour was troubled.

He found it tough to adapt to the grind, while later battling injuries, and he admitted he thought about quitting.

“It’s really difficult. It’s not the sort of strawberries and cream of Wimbledon that I expected,” he said of life on the tour.

“It was a real grind for a few years, getting my head around the nature of the tennis world, how hard I’m going to have to work to be a top player, the travel and the sacrifice.

“I genuinely thought that maybe I wasn’t cut out for tennis.”

Draper stuck to his guns and, after a injury-hit 2023 which saw his miss Wimbledon, he has been rewarded with a breakout year.

A first ATP Tour title in Stuttgart and the British number one ranking came in June and was hastily followed by beating Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz at Queen’s.

But it is his run in New York, where he is two wins away from emulating Murray’s 2012 title and Emma Raducanu’s 2021 success, that is his real moment in the sun.

He was won all of his five matches so far without losing a set and has looked as calm and comfortable as could be. Even in the height of Murray’s powers, the Scot had significant moments of jeopardy in his grand slam runs.

A lefty, with a big serve, Draper has all the weapons to succeed and his shift in mentality to becoming a more aggressive player has seen his game develop further.

A career-high ranking in the top 20 awaits at the end of the tournament, but Draper will be eyeing a much bigger prize.