In the Stadthalle
Murray’s “heir” is the first semi-finalist in Vienna
Jack Draper's rise continues in Vienna! The 21-year-old Briton defeated Tomas Machac from the Czech Republic 6:3, 3:6, 6:1 to become the first player to reach the semi-finals of the Stadthalle tennis tournament.
Even at a young age, Jack Draper was praised in advance as the new British tennis hope. However, injuries repeatedly set him back. But by reaching the semi-finals at the US Open this year at the latest, the 21-year-old has arrived at the very top of the world rankings.
As a child, Andy Murray was - of course - his great idol. "What he achieved in tennis is simply unbelievable, especially when you consider that it was during the time with Nadal, Federer and Djokovic. I got to spend a lot of time with him. It's a shame that he's retired," says Draper, speaking of the three-time Grand Slam winner with enormous respect.
His style of play is, of course, completely different and is also based on a special story. "I'm actually right-handed, I also write with my right hand," explains Draper. "But as a child, when I played against the wall, I picked up the tennis racket with my left and stuck with it." Similar to one Nadal, then.
Ace on match point
In contrast to his idol Murray, the 1.93-metre man lives above all from his strong serve, which is even more unpleasant for his opponent as an athlete who plays with his left hand. He also managed 11 aces against Machac in the quarter-finals, and it was fitting that he converted his match point to make it 6:3, 3:6, 6:1 after 2:07 hours.
But Draper showed that he also moves well for his size. His forehand has plenty of spin and his backhand is rock solid. "For many, that's the weak point, but because I play with my left hand, I feel very comfortable with it."
The first two sets of the quarter-final duel with Machac in particular featured strong rallies. The Czech seemed to have the upper hand in the second set, but Draper's early break to 2:0 in the third set was decisive after his opponent got annoyed and hit the net with his racket. After that, the thread broke and Draper sailed towards the semi-finals, and will also be ranked at least 17th in the world on Monday, higher than ever before.
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