'No One Wanted To Hit With Me': Draper Reveals How Fellow Players Disrespected Him
NewsMonday, 19 May 2025 at 18:14
Jack Draper offered a stark insight into the brutal reality of being a young player trying to make a career playing tennis with an anecdote about how other players treated him at the 2021 Miami Open.
Many fans became aware of Draper in the second half of 2024 or this year, when he began accumulating outstanding results. The Briton reached the 2024 US Open semifinal before winning the ATP 500 title in Vienna.
In 2025, Draper established himself as one of the best players in the world. He won his maiden Masters 1000 title at the Indian Wells Open and finished as the runner-up to Casper Ruud at the Madrid Open.
However, hardcore tennis fans remember Draper's journey to the point. That included him being given a wild card for the 2021 Miami Open as a 19-year-old, ranked outside the Top 300 at that time.
The other ATP players in the draw did not hide that they did not rate Draper yet. In an interview with Sky Sports Tennis at the Italian Open, Draper recounted having his name crossed out because no one wanted to practice with him.
"When I first came onto the tour, I remember being 340 in the world, and I got a wild card into the Miami Open, and I wrote my name down for practice, and no one wanted to hit with me. They were all just crossing out my name and putting someone else's name."
Draper admitted that he needed to win matches and become more successful to gain the respect of his peers, which led to a greater understanding of how they are all trying to achieve the same goal of being successful professionals.
"But obviously, I think as you play more, as you win more matches, as you get to know the players and get to know that we're all the same, and we're all sacrificing our lives and trying to do the right thing in tennis and trying to go after our goals — that gains respect. And so I think, combined with results and just the person, I think that, ultimately leads to more respect."
There are fewer rivalries in tennis today that contain animosity. For instance, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner get along well, as do Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, and Coco Gauff. That contrasts sharply with John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors, or when Roger Federer used to dislike Novak Djokovic.
However, professional tennis remains a tough business. Most of the players love their jobs, but they require constant dedication and ruthlessness. Sabalenka goes even further and admits she is "a bi**h" during matches.
Draper also gave insight into the mental strength needed to progress through the Futures and Challenger Tour events, as thousands of people want to be tennis players.
"People think it's all glitz and glamour, when actually, coming up through the ranks in the Futures, the Challengers — there’s thousands of players who are hungry to be in this position, inside the world’s Top 100. And you have to go to some not amazing places and compete in front of no people and stay in the same place for a long time."
"Mentally, that's very challenging. Of course, it has a lot of ups to it as well — the winning and that sort of stuff — but it’s a very lonely road to get to that point. So I’d definitely say breaking the Top 100 was something that, you know, I’ll look back on as — that’s one of the hardest things I’ve done yet."
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