“He ticks every box” – Renowned coach exclusively reveals the one player who can emulate the ‘Big 3’
British tennis coach David Felgate believes that Jack Draper could takeover once the ‘Big 3’ of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic have all retired from tennis.
Draper had a phenomenal 2022, rising from outside the top 250 to inside the top 50 at the end of the year, overtaking Andy Murray to become the British No.3.
His ranking improved by over 200 places due to his incredible form, allowing him to pick up two top-10 wins, a Masters 1000 quarter-final, an ATP semi-final and four challenger titles.
As a consequence, the now 21-year-old qualified for the ATP Next Generation Finals where he reached the semi-finals.
Hear what David had to say in our exclusive interview with his comments about Jack Draper coming at 11.40
“What he has shown, his game, his abilities, his love of the sport – he ticks every box and I like the journey that he has taken, step by step and a big jump this year. He has got all the attributes needed to go right to the top of the sport,” said Felgate praising the talented Brit.
Comparing Draper to the ‘Big 3’, who have won a combined 63 Grand Slam titles, is a strong statement from Felgate but Draper has impressed against one of them before.
At Wimbledon in 2021, a 19-year-old Draper made his first Grand Slam appearance as a wildcard and impressed against the top seed Novak Djokovic. Draper was in-fact one of only two men to take a set off the Serb on his way to the title, the other being the beaten finalist Matteo Berrettini.
Felgate is a former professional tennis player, with a top ranking of 301, and has a career highlight of playing against Ivan Lendl on Court One at Wimbledon. Following retirement, Felgate moved onto coaching and has had long stints with the likes of Tim Henman, and Donna Vekic. He now heads up the JTC Tennis Academy with ASICS as their clothing and shoe sponsor.
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