Jack Draper splits with long-term coach after hiring Jamie Delgado

Thursday, 16 October 2025 at 19:56

byJordan Reynolds

Jack Draper's decision to work with Jamie Delgado has been swiftly followed by his long-term coach, James Trotman, splitting from him.

Trotman began coaching Draper in 2021. At that stage, the Briton was still unknown to the tennis world, but his development under his compatriot's guidance in the past few years has been superb.

After some promising signs in 2023, Draper broke through in 2024. His achievements during that year included winning his first ATP title in Stuttgart, first 500-level crown in Vienna, and reaching the 2024 US Open semifinal.

Draper's results have been even better this year. He won his first Masters 1000 title at the 2025 Indian Wells Open, beating Holger Rune in the final with a dominant performance against the Dane, who is in danger of becoming a wasted talent.

The 23-year-old peaked at No. 4 earlier this season. Unfortunately, he had to cut 2025 short because of an arm injury that ruled him out of the US Open second round and from the ongoing 2025 Six Kings Slam.

Rather than sit and wait for the new season to begin, Draper took decisive action by hiring Jamie Delgado, who has worked with Andy Murray and Grigor Dimitrov, as his leading coach for the 2026 season.

Initially, it was reported that Trotman would still have a role in Draper's team while traveling less. However, the coach confirmed to BBC Sport that he has decided to step back entirely for family reasons.

"I've made the decision that four years has been a great run. I've thoroughly enjoyed it, but it was getting increasingly difficult for me juggling the demands Jack deserves as the player that he is - and also being a father and a husband."

"I need to start to get those energy levels back up and have a little bit more normality - watch my son play football on a Sunday, go on some family holidays, have a bit more of a normal life."

Despite parting after four successful years, Trotman says that he retains a good relationship with Draper and will support him in any way possible as he moves on to the next chapter with Delgado.

"My relationship with Jack is strong. We are extremely close. We spent more time with each other than anybody else on the planet over the past four years. We are going to stay incredibly close and obviously I'll be following and supporting in any way I can from the sidelines."

"Whatever Jack does in the future, I feel incredibly proud of the work that I've done. And where Jack is now, is not just as a result of me, it's a result of everybody that's worked with Jack and his family from a young age."

Trotman thinks that Delgado, whose successful spell with Dimitrov ended last month, is a great replacement, and believes they would have worked well together had he stayed on Dimitrov's team.

"One of the few people we could have worked really well together with was Jamie. I have a huge respect for him as a person and as a coach and the job that he has done with Gilles Muller, Andy [Murray] and more recently with Grigor [Dimitrov]."