Brit hope Jack back on track

JACK DRAPER backs his tennis ability very highly — but the young Brit says he must now learn how to trust his body after a frustrating season pockmarked by injury.

The 21-year-old, ranked world No60 ahead of his French Open debut, was the name on the lips of most in British tennis last season after convincing displays at Grand Slams which included beating No8 Felix AugerAliassime in New York and taking a set off Rafa Nadal in Melbourne.

But Draper has had a stop-start 2023, starting with an illness that wrecked his pre-season preparations. He has had a problem with scar tissue in his hip and, more recently, a niggling abdominal problem.

The Sutton-born lefty rushed his recovery from that and returned prematurely in Monte Carlo in April and so was forced into another five weeks of rehabilitation. But after three matches in Lyon last week, he starts Roland Garros with a clean bill of health.

‘I had to take some time out and really work out the areas of my injuries, especially the hip one because it was becoming very chronic,’ he said ahead of his firstround clash with Argentinian Tomas Martin Etcheverry tomorrow.

‘I had a lot of scar tissue in my hip that wasn’t going away. I found a solution and I’m on the right path with that now. So that has allowed me to get back on court and feel really good. There’s no doubt that my tennis level is at a really good place.

‘It’s just getting the body right and I’m still young and figuring out how to do that.’

Draper spent seven weeks at the National Tennis Centre in Roehampton, working from 8am until 7pm daily with fitness guru Dejan Vojnovic.

‘Nothing can substitute playing matches — competing is where you get a lot of your fitness from,’ added Draper.

‘When you’re training every day for four weeks you’ve not got that competitive buzz.

‘You’re not learning from a loss and you don’t have the fire if someone beats you. Getting back on court is good as it shows all the work starts to come together a bit.’

The Brit admits he is inexperienced in Slams and says he does not yet trust his body to go the distance in a string of five-set matches. ‘I’m still waiting to find that confidence in my body,’ he said.