Jack Draper becomes highest Wimbledon seed since Andy Murray but two-time champ ‘refuses to answer questions about him'
JACK DRAPER can shower with the big boys now as he secured a top-four seeding spot at Wimbledon.
England's top hope fought off American Brandon Nakashima 6-4 5-7 6-4 to reach the Queen's semi-finals for the first time.
2
2
The Sutton star is on collision course with Carlos Alcaraz in Sunday's final as the Spanish hero eliminated French lucky loser Arthur Rinderknech 7-5 6-4 – his record 16th win in a row.
Yet Draper – who ends this week as world No 4 after moving up two spots – will avoid Alcaraz and world No 1 Jannik Sinner until at least the semi-finals on SW19 Centre Court.
And he can enjoy the comforts of washing in the exclusive Gentlemen's Members' Dressing Room, one of the perks of being an elite player.
Draper – Britain's highest Wimbledon seed since defending champion Andy Murray was top guy in 2017 – said: 'This means the world to me.
'This is a definite huge step for me. I remember last year going into the grass ranked around 40.
'To be inside the top-four come Wimbledon one year around, that's massive progress.
'A testament to my team, the dedication I have had for tennis, the work I have put in on a daily basis.
'You know, I live and breathe the sport and I'm obsessed with progressing.
'I'm obsessed with becoming the player that I want to become all the time and achieve the things I want to.
'The top-16 seeds get, you know, a better changing room. There's some tournaments where it's top-eight seeds, in the Masters 1000s I've had this year.
'Nothing is different apart from the fact that maybe, potentially I won't see Alcaraz or Sinner in the quarters – if I make it there.'
Meanwhile, Murray won't be stepping into TV punditry work just yet – as he does not want to annoy Jack Draper with his words.
Muzza, 38, hated it when he was playing and former British tennis stars, who had nowhere near his same level of ability or talent, gave him advice.
Now retired and at a loose end following the dissolution of his coaching gig with 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, the Scotsman could earn decent money working for the BBC.
But the two-time Wimbledon singles champion is conscious of appearing in front of millions and saying something that current British No 1 Draper, 23, disagrees with.
Asked by GQ magazine if he feels the need to stay in the public eye, Murray replied: 'I'm not thinking daily that I need to tweet something or somehow remain relevant.
'That's why I'm much more interested in the idea of coaching because I feel like I'd actually really be helping someone.
'Whereas with punditry, it can be harmful. If I go and work at, let's say Wimbledon, you start getting asked questions about British players like Jack Draper.
'I know when the British ex–tennis players would talk about my tennis and what I should be doing.
'Because you respect them, you listen to what they're saying – but it's not always the same as what your coach is telling you.
'What the pundits are saying could be wrong. They're not right all the time, and when you're young, it's quite conflicting.
'So I'd be more inclined to do coaching, because I think punditry is quite an easy gig. You can just throw stuff out there.
"People love it if it's a bit controversial, but you don't actually have any skin in the game.'
On an extremely hot day, Draper, 23, will try to out-ace Czech speedster Jiri Lehecka, who crushed the spirit of British star Jacob Fearnley 7-5 6-2 in the opening quarter-final.
Dressed in all-black clothes, the black-haired Scotsman injured his arm returning one 138mph ace.
And overall he served TEN double faults as his service game malfunctioned due to nerves and anxiety.
Fearnley, 23, moaned: 'He was serving great. I was serving terrible. At this level you can't give away that many free points.'
BBC's Wimbledon TV comms team will be revealed on Monday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
40 minutes ago
- The Sun
‘Defending my spot' – Oban Elliott driven by fear of return to life before Dana White issued UFC deal ahead of Baku bout
OBAN ELLIOT may have established himself as a mainstay in the UFC, but the Welsh welterweight is refusing to rest on his laurels. 2024 was a year to remember for the pride of Wales, who fulfilled his lifelong dream of competing in the promised land of mixed martial arts. 8 8 8 8 And he entered the promotion with a bang, going a perfect 3-0 in just under nine life-changing months. Elliott, who is poised to make an assault on the top 15 this year, has come a long way from working night shift on the railways in Merthyr Tydfil and cleaning the grill at Nando's to pay the bills and supplement his training. His feet may be firmly in the UFC door, but the fear of one day having to return to the life he worked so hard to escape is as much his driving force as winning a world title. In an exclusive interview with SunSport, 'The Welsh Gangster' said: "I'm just so glad it worked out, man. I'm so glad. "And just for me, it just meant that much more, you know? To get here and do it. I didn't care for anything else, I didn't. "There was nothing else that interested me in life. And that's probably dark when you look like that, but it worked out. "When I got that UFC contract is when I relaxed and when I could smile without something in the back of my head saying, 'Yeah, but you're not there yet.' "And now I'm like, 'No, I'm here. I'm home. And just the fact that it all worked out, thank f***ing God. It just meant that much to me." JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS 8 8 The memory of working on the railways and at Nando's is still fresh for Elliott, who believes he already has a belt adorned on him as a result of all the blood, sweat and tears he's shed trying to achieve his dream. "To be settled in and to be living this life now, it's a new challenge in itself," Elliott candidly admitted. "Because now I just think about defending it." Brit UFC star Oban Elliot explains how working nightshift on railway tracks fortified his mindset He continued: "I'm just thinking about defending my spot. There's a belt over my shoulder and I'm defending my belt every fight. "Every training session, I'm defending my belt and that is it. "And maybe somewhere along the line, Dana is gonna wrap another one around me. But I will always have my one. "That's the way I see all of this. So it's just a case of defending this spot and defending this life that I now live." The highlight of Elliott's UFC career came at Madison Square Garden last November in the form of a beautifully set-up third-round knockout of Bassil Hafez. And that moment, which earned the 27-year-old a life-changing $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus, will likely only be topped when he becomes the undisputed king of the welterweights. "To get that knockout was just the best moment ever," Elliot said. "For me, everything that I wanted in life happened in that third round. "That little fake with my feet going outside of his right leg, throwing the shot and there he was, right in the middle of the Monster can. it's just a case of defending this spot and defending this life that I now live." Oban Elliot "And I look up. The cry was going nuts, the pose. 'Who's the man in New York City, brother?' "How lucky am I? That's how I feel. That is just unreal. Like, look at that. Jesus Christ, that happened to me. "I've heard people say, 'You work hard for this?' People work hard for things and they fall short of their dreams and it happens to people. "But in that moment, in the cage that night, all my hard work paid off. And I got that for the rest of my life. So I'm the proudest guy ever." Elliott's latest outing will take place this evening in a land far, far away from Merthyr Tydfil - Baku. Fellow Dana White 's Contenders Series contract winner Seok-hyeon Ko stands between Elliott and a four-fight win streak. And if he notches it in similarly spectacular fashion as he did his last victory, it will put him on the precipice of tangling with the elite of the talent-rich 170lbs division. "This guy is a tough, tough man," Elliot said of the South Korean. " And he's coming to win. 8 8 "And he is going to come to fight. Take the UFC out and take the nonsense out of all of it, this is a man versus a man who are going to fight to the death in the cage. "He has all my respect, all my attention and it's going to be a tough fight for both of us. "May we get out of their cage healthy, and the better man will win. "I think the better guy is me, so we'll see if I'm wrong." He added: "After this fight, [I want to get] two more [fights in] hopefully and keep my imaginary belt over my shoulder. "The belt that I had before I even put the gloves on - in my mind. "In my mind, I've been a champion long before any of this came to light in my life. "So I'm just [going to] keep defending my spot, keep making my family proud and keep doing my best. And if I'm doing that, I'm winning."
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Manx firefighter takes on Parish Walk in full kit challenge
A Douglas firefighter is attempting an epic walking challenge on the Isle of Man, in his full emergency Hays is taking on the 85 mile (136km) Parish Walk to raise money for the Fire Fighters Charity and the Great North Air Ambulance full uniform, breathing apparatus, and helmet, added about 15kg (33 lbs) of weight to the challenge, which gave participants 24 hours to complete the would be the 37-year-old's first attempt at the event and he said: "I've definitely gone in at the deep end with this." While many do complete the walk that visits all 17 island parishes, the majority of those taking part set a target to reach the halfway point of Hays said: "I'm looking to ideally travel between hopefully Peel and maybe Ballaugh at the furthest, which will be about 30 to 40 miles." About 1,100 walkers are expected to take to Manx roads as part of the annual challenge. 'Mental resilience' It follows a similar challenge last year, when two of his colleagues took on the walk wearing firefighting helmets. But this year they wanted to "elevate it" and Mr Hays said he "voted myself in to do it" for the two it would be a big physical challenge, he said it would also test him mentally. He said: "Mental resilience is something that's quite big in the firefighting profession, just being able to kind of dig into what reserves you might have and just carry on with what's in front of you."Hopefully this proves that to the nth degree," he added. To train Mr Hays said as well as going for walks of about 15 miles at a time wearing weight belts, he had also been walking on an inclined treadmill with sand in his cylinder for added off at the National Sports Centre at 08:00 BST, competitors will cross the finish line in the gruelling challenge on Douglas Promenade on Saturday. Read more stories from the Isle of Man on the BBC, watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer and follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and X.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Somerset in Pictures: Heatwave and Glastonbury Festival prep
During the hottest week of the year in Somerset, Glastonbury Festival organisers have been sharing photographs of Worthy Farm as the site is were also two tense two cricket matches, which saw the county's men's and women's team people have been making the most of the hot weather, with one group photographing a family of goats at Cheddar a look at some of the best pictures of the week. Not long now: In four days, Worthy Farm will open its gate for this year's Glastonbury Festival. Ahead of the event, organisers have shared images of the site, including one with a huge peace sign in front of the Pyramid Stage. They said the image represented what their festival is all about, which is to celebrate the best of human endeavour. Ideals of peace, unity, respect and hope underpins all that they stand for, they added. Cricket season: Will Smeed of Somerset played during the Vitality Blast Men match between Somerset and Kent Spitfires at The Cooper Associates County Ground on 15 June. Bowling action: Charlie Dean of Somerset was captured in bowling action during the Vitality Blast Women match between Somerset and Hampshire Hawks at The Cooper Associates County Ground on 19 June. Hoofing around: A BBC Weather Watcher took a picture of these two goats hanging out on top of Cheddar Gorge in the sun. Full steam ahead: The Flying Scotsman will be taking people along the route between Bishops Lydeard and Minehead in will be four excursions per day, one way will be behind the Flying Scotsman, and one way will be behind a West Somerset Railway Home Fleet locomotive. Heatwave: The UK has recorded its hottest day of the year with temperatures passing 32C in the south east of England. Here in the West Country, some areas saw the mercury reach 30C on Thursday. Outstanding doctor: Local retired GP, Dr Harvey Sampson, has been awarded the prestigious British Empire Medal in the King's Birthday Honours list for nurses, therapist, and volunteer community first responder received awards for their hard work and dedication to helping people and communities across the NHS and health care settings.
