Emma Raducanu‘s US Open title in 2021 showed the world anything is possible. And for young tennis players in Britain, who had grown up watching the god-like figure of Andy Murray, it showed that mortals could win Grand Slams, too.
Jack Draper was one such player; watching Raducanu’s run lit a spark in him and, this fortnight, that spark has burst into flame.
‘What Emma did was incredibly inspiring,’ said Draper, who takes on world No1 Jannik Sinner today at the US Open, in his first Grand Slam semi-final. ‘I’ve known her from a young age, and to see what she did was incredible. I was very proud of her.
‘We watched Andy Murray winning a Grand Slam from Great Britain but her winning, it was really a fairytale run. As a competitor, it fuelled my fire. I really wanted to achieve what she’d done, winning a Grand Slam.
‘I learned a lot from watching Emma win, that run, and how amazing she was. It was unbelievable to see her do what she did. I took a lot of motivation and inspiration from it.’
Emma Raducanu’s US Open title in 2021 showed the world anything is possible
Draper takes on world No1 Jannik Sinner today at the US Open, in his first Grand Slam semi-final
Today Draper will face not just one of, but THE best player in the world
Draper will need every ounce of motivation, every speck of inspiration if he is to pull off the win of his life against Sinner to reach the final.
Like Raducanu, Draper is yet to drop a set and has lived a charmed life in terms of the draw – until today, at least.
But while Raducanu won as an 18-year-old not long out of school, Draper, although only 22 himself, has had to drag his way up to the top of the game through dangerous waters. Each time he looked like breaking the surface, injury has stuck in its claws and dragged him back down.
As his coach James Trottman said: ‘Physically it’s been a struggle. He’s a big boy, he’s got a big body, it takes time to grow into that. He’s had a lot of injuries and a lot of setbacks.
‘But Jack isn’t afraid of hard work and doing what it’s going to take. Ultimately, we want to build the best version of Jack. We’re seeing a pretty good version of that right here.’
In a curiously back-to-front way, for Raducanu the glory came first, then the struggles.
‘There’s no doubt it was extremely difficult for Emma,’ said Draper. ‘She’d done her A levels and all of a sudden she came here, had a dream run and the expectation on her after that was huge. She hadn’t necessarily built up the physical foundations you need to be on the tour full time.
‘I think that’s where I’ve had blessings in disguise. I’ve got injured a few times. It’s made me realise I have to put all my life into this sport. Eat the right things, train harder than I ever have before. Get good people around me, shut myself off and focus on what’s going to make me the one of the best players in the world.’
Draper said: ‘We watched Andy Murray winning a Grand Slam from Great Britain but her winning, it was really a fairytale run’
In a curiously back-to-front way, for Raducanu the glory came first, then the struggles
Draper has won their only previous meeting, at Queen’s in 2021, and while he should take heart from that this is a different ball game
Today Draper will face not just one of, but THE best player in the world. That is according to the rankings at least and, although one could argue Carlos Alcaraz has been the overall best player this year, on a hard court Sinner is top dog.
He is also a man with whom Draper has formed a close friendship, which adds an extra flavour to this mouthwatering semi-final.
This bond has only come to light recently. They played doubles together at the Canadian Open, and then in a pre-US Open video when top players were asked who they would call in an emergency, the 23-year-old Italian chose Draper.
‘Jannik is a good friend, someone I’m close to,’ said Draper.
‘It’s a tough sport when you’re a young guy. You’re on the road, playing a relentlessly intense sport, physically and emotionally, and we haven’t got many friends.
‘It started through sending messages to each other when we’re having bad moments or good moments.
‘He’s incredibly kind, genuine, funny, and that’s more important than being a great player, but he’s also an unbelievable player and great for the sport too.’
Sinner, as is his wont, was a little more guarded: ‘It was nice to share the court with him in doubles in Montreal, we got to know each other even more. It’s a great friendship, obviously we try to put this away for the hours we are on court. But whenever we shake hands, it’s friendship back and all is good.’
That final handshake will take place in the late evening, UK time, after the tournament broke with convention to schedule Sinner v Draper in the US afternoon slot.
Usually the players who have had an extra day’s rest play first but the US Open have decided to put the All-American showdown between Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz, one of the biggest matches in this tournament’s recent history, in the primetime night session.
So Sinner and Draper will begin at 3pm local time, 8pm UK, and the tournament favourite may not be too happy about that. He could have used the extra few hours’ rest given his four-set win against 2021 champion Daniil Medvedev finished at midnight on Wednesday. And if Draper’s thigh, which he had strapped during his quarter-final win over Alex de Minaur, is sore then the early berth might not suit him either.
But Draper played down that issue and, regardless of the players’ wishes, this schedule leaves the Europeans and the Americans in ideal slots for their TV regions so it feels like a no brainer.
Sinner came into this tournament under a brighter – and harsher – spotlight than usual after the revelation he had failed two doping tests and been exonerated of all fault for the contamination. Support from his fellow players has been far from universal, with many upset by the lack of a provisional suspension. But Sinner’s emergency contact has his back.
‘He must be going through a lot right now. The anti-doping laws are very, very strict and anything can get in your system in the weirdest ways. All I know is I really don’t think Jannik would have had any clue about what was going on. For him to carry that on his shoulders for the last, four or five months, and make semis of Grand Slams and win Masters events, I think his mental strength is… I don’t think many people could have done that.’
One could argue Carlos Alcaraz has been the overall best player this year, on a hard court Sinner is top dog
The US Open have put the showdown between Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz (pictured), one of the biggest matches in this tournament’s recent history, in the primetime night session
Sinner could have used the extra few hours’ rest given his four-set win against 2021 champion Daniil Medvedev finished at midnight on Wednesday
As a junior, Sinner was far from a leading light. Draper first played him in doubles and he and his partner played on Sinner as the weak link in the opposing team.
How times have changed. Sinner, like Draper, is 6ft 4in but moves with the effortless grace of the national-standard skier he once was. With his lithe, whiplash arm he imparts astonishing force on the ball.
Draper has won their only previous meeting, at Queen’s in 2021, and while he should take heart from that this is a different ball game. This is Arthur Ashe with 24,000 screaming fans. This is the US Open semi-finals. This is, by far, the biggest match of his life.
