Jack Draper was set to compete at the 2024 Winston-Salem Open, but he has decided to withdraw from the tournament.
The past few hours have been really intense for the British player. He reached the quarter-finals at the 2024 Cincinnati Open, ensuring a new career-high in the ATP Rankings and breakthrough into the world's Top 25 as a result of his run.
However, it didn't happen without controversy. On a match point of his third-round match against Felix Auger-Aliassime, a controversial call from the umpire overshadowed Draper's win and one of his biggest career achievements.
It's only the second time that he made it to the quarter-finals of an ATP Masters 1000 tournament, after losing in that stage at the 2022 Canadian Open to Pablo Carreno Busta, 6-7(4), 1-6.
This time, he will play against Holger Rune, as both will be attempting to reach the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Open. However, immediately after the ATP Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati, the British player was supposed to move to Winston-Salem.
He signed up for the 2024 Winston-Salem Open, an ATP 250 tournament, running from August 18th to 24th, just a week prior to the last Grand Slam of the season. This tournament is often used by players who want to fine-tune their form shortly prior to the US Open.
At the tournament, Draper was seeded second, and he should have started against the winner of the match between Mackenzie McDonald and Corentin Moutet. However, he withdrew from the tournament, and was replaced by Roman Safiullin, who was moved into a seeding spot, giving him a first-round BYE.
The reason for Draper's withdrawal is simple. Although he had a first-round BYE, and would have likely avoided playing in the first two days of the competition, it could still be too close to his campaign at the Cincinnati Open.
The tournament in Cincinnati runs until the August 19th, which means that should he reach the final, he would have to move immediately to Winston-Salem to pursue his run at the ATP 250 tournament.
With such a great run at an ATP Masters 1000 event, the Brit obviously doesn't need another tournament to play, as he will prioritize getting rest ahead of the major at Flushing Meadows.
It's thanks to his run in Cincinnati that he properly ensured that he would be among the seeded players. Should he win the title at the Cincinnati Open, the Brit could be even among the Top 16 seeds, which would ensure him avoiding the other top seeds at least until the Round of 16.
That should further boost his chances of going deep at the US Open, which could once again boost his ranking. While the Winston-Salem Open organizers won't be happy about his decision, especially after also Arthur Fils and Matteo Berrettini withdrew from the tournament, it was certainly a sensible decision for Draper, who will focus on his run in Cincinnati.