Draper relishing Davis Cup return after stunning US Open run

Jack Draper wants to use his stunning run to the US Open semi-finals as a platform for next week’s Davis Cup Qualifiers in Manchester.

The British No.1, 22, has brilliantly navigated his way to the last four at Flushing Meadows where he will face No.1 Jannik Sinner on Friday night.

But next week, he will pivot his attention to matters closer to home as he flies the British flag in the Davis Cup – widely regarded as the World Cup of tennis – at the AO Arena.

Draper enjoyed a memorable debut by edging past Australia in three tight sets last year and is relishing the prospect of representing his country on home soil.

“Last year in Manchester was the first time I ever played a live Davis Cup match against Australia and I couldn’t have asked for a better debut,” he said.

“I never really understood the importance of Davis Cup and why it was so big before that, but after that it gave me the understanding of why it was so important to represent your country.

“It was an amazing team with Andy [Murray], Dan [Evans], Cam [Norrie] and Neal [Skupski] there and for Leon [Smith] to put his faith in me to play that first match was amazing in front of 10,000 people at home.

“What makes the Davis Cup so special is playing in that environment in front of your team, the fans, your family - it really felt like one big family.

“I was incredibly proud of my performance in that first match and how I competed - it was the perfect debut.”

Draper catapulted him onto the big stage six years ago when he narrowly lost to Tseng Chun-hsin in the boys’ singles final at Wimbledon.

He seized his maiden ATP title at this year’s Stuttgart Open and despite crashing out to compatriot Cam Norrie in the second round at Wimbledon, refound his fluent best on the hard courts of New York.

The Brit beat world No.10 Alex de Minaur in Wednesday night’s quarter-finals to tee up a tantalising clash with Australian Open champion Sinner, 23, on Friday night.

Speaking ahead of that clash from Flushing Meadows, Draper – who became the first British men’s player to reach this stage since Andy Murray – added: “This is not kind of like an overnight thing for me.

“I've believed for a long time that I've been putting in the work and doing the right things, and I knew that my time would come.

“I didn't know when it would be, but hopefully from here, I can do a lot of amazing things. I'm very proud of myself.

“To follow in Andy's footsteps and make the quarter-finals here since he did it, it's a big achievement for me and I’m incredibly proud.”

You can see Jack and the rest of the GB team play at the AO Arena from Wednesday, September 11th next week, and tickets start from £5 for children and £10 for adults, available via ticketmaster or https://www.lta.org.uk/fan-zone/gb-teams/davis-cup/tickets/