Jack Draper on grass courts: ‘It highlighted a lot of weaknesses in my game’

Jack Draper of Great Britain showed his disappointment when he faced a second-round loss at Wimbledon. Entering the tournament as the fourth seed, the athlete was recently defeated by 36-year-old Maris Cilic with a final scoreline of  6-4, 6-3, 1-6, 6-4. 

Cilic has not participated in Wimbledon since 2021 due to a recurring knee injury. However, this did not hinder him from winning against the British player. 

Draper said that he was not satisfied with his performance on the grass courts this season. He admitted: “I’ve been really disappointed with the way my game’s been on the grass this year, in all honesty… I wasn’t feeling too great at Queen’s. I don’t know how I made the semis there and gave myself a chance of making the final.” 

He also declared that the grass courts this year brought out his weakness. “It highlighted to me this year that I really struggle on the grass. I felt great on the hard court, felt great on the clay. My game, I felt like there wasn’t many holes, whereas as soon as I came onto the grass I felt a big difference.” 

“It’s just something I’ve got to keep in mind, how I’m going to develop my game for the long term for next year, just to get better as a player,” he added. 

Draper struggles on grass courts 

Asked to elaborate on what was wrong with his game, especially on the grass surface, Draper explained: “I think the hole in my forehand showed up, for sure. I wasn’t able to deal with his pace of ball into my forehand. I was over-spinning a lot.” 

He added: “I think a lot of my success this year with my forehand, when I have more time, it’s a lot easier for me because I can create the speed and the spin that I want, and the effectiveness of that.” 

The athlete reflected on his performances and said that his movements could have been better. Draper also admitted that he still needs to work harder to be the tennis player that he wanted to be. 

“I want to feel like everything in my game is secure. I think that’s what you see with the top guys. They’re so consistent all the time because there’s no holes in their game… In some ways that’s exciting, and in some ways that’s hard to deal with because I thought I was ahead of where I was,” Draper said. 

On social media, Draper received encouraging comments from his fans. One wrote, “You did a great job, even when it was difficult… Even champions have lost at some point. The key is to keep going and learn from your mistakes 🥹.” Others added, “Have a good time preparing for the next match! You’ll do it,” and “Maybe it ended not the way you liked it, but you’ve been a champion in many ways 🔥🙌❤️.”