As he navigates his first full, healthy year on the ATP tour, Jack Draper has been trying to find his identity on the tennis court. At 6ft 4in, the 22‑year‑old Briton towers over so many of his adversaries and he is capable of completely overpowering many of them. But he is also an excellent athlete and a strong returner, qualities that not all players of his stature possess.
After playing with greater clarity over the past few months, in the biggest match of his career to date Draper found the perfect balance as he drew on all aspects of his well‑rounded game and demonstrated his mental toughness under pressure, defeating Tomas Machac 6-3, 6-1, 6-2 to reach his first grand slam quarter-final.
By breaking new ground in New York, Draper is the third youngest British man in the Open era to reach a grand slam quarter-final after Tim Henman and Andy Murray, an achievement he has attained without dropping a set. Draper is also the first British man to reach the US Open quarter-finals since Murray in 2016.
Draper said: “I’m incredibly proud of that achievement. Obviously it’s one of the biggest tournaments in the world. To follow in Andy’s footsteps and make the quarter‑finals here since he did it in 2016, it’s a big achievement for me. But, you know, I think I’ve just got to keep on going because I know that there’s still room for improvement and still room to hopefully go further in the tournament.”
This was the most significant occasion in his career so far, an opportunity to take another step forward by truly making a deep run at a grand slam tournament. In the fourth round last year, Draper was the clear underdog as he lost against Andrey Rublev, the eighth seed, but this time he began the match as the 25th seed and favourite with all the added pressure that comes with those expectations.
Machac is an extremely talented player who is enjoying a career‑best year and, now an Olympic gold medallist in mixed doubles, he had won all three of their previous meetings on both the ATP and Challenger tours. But this dire, error‑strewn performance in his first grand slam fourth‑round match underlined the pressure that can come with these significant matches.
Draper handled the occasion and his flailing opponent brilliantly, maintaining his intensity and aggression until the end.
In the opening stages, Machac came out of the blocks pounding the ball off both wings, constantly looking to take the first strike. Draper remained calm, counterpunching from behind the baseline and choosing his moments to inject pace into the exchanges.
His patience paid off at 3-3 as Machac began to overpress and he played a terrible service game, his forehand collapsing as he sprayed four unforced errors to lose his serve. With the break secured, Draper’s measured aggression allowed him to roll through seven consecutive service games.
As he moved towards victory at speed, Draper increasingly opened up his shoulders and he showed the full array of his talents. He leaned into more searing forehands, closed off key points with tidy net approaches and he played the final two sets on the front foot, refusing to let Machac back into the match. It was an extremely solid and mature performance, exactly what was required of him to achieve the best result of his career.
During his post-match press conference, Draper repeatedly described his run as “strange”. He does not feel like he has played his best tennis yet he has rolled through to the quarter-finals without dropping a set.
Against Machac, his opponent’s poor performance meant that his biggest struggle was to maintain his intensity, guard against complacency and not allow his opponent back into the match. He managed those challenges brilliantly.
“I feel very positive about where my base level is and just feeling calm about my tennis and myself. I’m looking forward to keep on going.”
In this wide-open US Open men’s draw, there could be more opportunities to come and his profile will only continue to grow – Anna Wintour, the editor of Vogue, sat in his player box and spoke with his brother and agent, Ben. Draper will next face either Alex de Minaur, the 10th seed, or Jordan Thompson with a first grand slam semi-final on the line for all.
