Jack Draper looking up to ‘crazily good competitors’ Andy Murray and Dan Evans ahead of grass season

Jack Draper has described fellow Brits Andy Murray and Dan Evans as “crazily good competitors” and hopes to do battle with them again as the grass-court season approaches.

The 21-year-old enjoyed a breakthrough season last year, rising into the top 50 in the ATP rankings and achieving wins over top-10 opponents like Stefanos Tsitsipas and Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Draper’s highlight of the 2023 season so far was a run to the last 16 at Indian Wells, where he beat far more experienced compatriots Murray and Evans before being forced to retire against Carlos Alcaraz.

“We’ve got a few really good players in the UK now and it’s important that we keep on pushing each other to improve,” Draper said to the LTA. “Obviously, I’m the younger guy, but I’ve always looked up to the older players and they’ve been great with me.

“They’re just crazily good competitors and great tennis players. I’ve been watching them for years and have practiced with them a lot so to have the opportunity to be on tour and play against them is something that’s really important to me.

“Hopefully I’ll have more battles with them because that type of adrenaline is exactly what you want as a tennis player.”

The grass-court season is fast approaching, and with it the opportunity to play in UK-based events at the likes of Eastbourne, Queen’s and Wimbledon.

It was in Eastbourne last year that the youngster battled his way to a career-first ATP Tour semi-final, fending off Jenson Brooksby, Diego Schwartzman and Ryan Peniston before defeat to Maxime Cressy.

But the world No. 58’s explanation for his impressive run had nothing to do with his game.

“I remember I got pooed on by a bird in an on-court interview – it’s supposed to be good luck and I had a really good tournament there,” Draper laughed. “I remember we would be midway through a point, and you’d hear noises from the crowd, which was obviously a crowd member being pooed on by a seagull.

“Hopefully I get pooed on again this year (for good luck)”.

Draper has been forced into a series of withdrawals recently and hasn’t featured since the Monte Carlo Masters, where he suffered a second-round defeat to Hubert Hurkacz.

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