Carlos Alcaraz is taken aback by Jack Draper’s stunning triumph at Queen’s Club.
In his press conference three weeks ago, Jack Draper was still processing his heartbreaking first-round defeat at the French Open, but he was also able to combine his grief and rage with some impressive perspective. Draper realized that he was in the process of significantly retooling his approach and that this was the right time to keep believing in his work.
In tennis, things can turn drastically very quickly, and Draper hasn’t lost a game since that depressing incident. He maintained his incredible run of breakthrough victories on Thursday at Queen’s as he defeated defending champion and top seed Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 (3), 6-3, to seal the doubleheader.
Currently, Andy Murray’s career appears to be nearing its end, but the next big British men’s player is beginning to make an impact on the sport. Remarkably, Draper is the first player from Britain to finish in the top two on grass since Murray overcame Novak Djokovic in the 2013 Wimbledon final. In addition, he is the first British man in fifty-two years to defeat the top seed at Queen’s.
“This is not overnight, even though it has come together in the last two weeks or so,” he remarked.
It has taken years to do this. As you mentioned, I’m extremely pleased with how it’s come together over the past few weeks, especially now that I’m performing in front of home crowds on the grass. Hopefully, I can maintain this momentum and continue to build.
In his third final, Draper defeated 2021 Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini to win his maiden ATP title in Stuttgart last week. He continued the momentum even though he had to rush back to London for his home tournament right away. He knew he had an excellent chance when he took on the defending Wimbledon and French Open winners. Alcaraz showed his mettle on the grass last year, but this was just his second game there in 2024, and he was still getting used to the surface.
Draper’s will to attack and command against opponents is paying dividends, just as it has in prior weeks. They reached a first-set tiebreak thanks to his excellent serving from the start. He breezed through his service games. Draper was the player who was most eager to attack in neutral rallies, take early returns, and close down the net whenever feasible while the set was on the line. He rapidly established a 6-1 lead. Alcaraz was by no means impoverished, but his doubt was penalized.
After winning the first set, Draper relaxed and began to play freely. With yet another display of aggressive tennis, he broke the serve by smashing a forehand volley to create a break chance and then winning with a backhand return. Draper performed admirably under duress in his final two service games. He saved a break chance at 4-2 with an amazing backhand half-volley, and he came back from 0-30 down in the final service game with superb serving to complete an amazing victory.
