Jack Draper has had one of the best years of his life on the ATP Tour, but such impossible highs have more recently given way to some crushing lows.
After all, just as he seemed to be gathering momentum heading into Wimbledon, coming off the back of his maiden Masters 1000 title in Indian Wells as well as a surprisingly impressive clay-court campaign, injury struck.
He was clearly hampered at his home Grand Slam, and would miss the following summer ahead of the US Open in a desperate bid for fitness.
Even that proved not enough, and despite a first-round win, he withdrew from the final major of the year and has been absent ever since.
Well, at last we have a concrete update on where he stands physically as the end of the tennis season draws near.
Jack Draper delivers important update on his injury recovery
Speaking on The Tennis Podcast, he admitted: “The arm is good.”
Given the current length of his absence from the sport, it was refreshing to see him appear to be upbeat on this ailment, as Draper continued: “The arm is getting better. I started the year really well. Built off the form I had last year. I was playing a lot of matches, and I really felt like my game was developing every week and on all surfaces as well.
“The clay was something that I always wanted to play well on. I hadn’t yet proved it. Did well over the clay court season. But I did have a niggling arm pain from around Madrid time.
“Around Wimbledon and the French Open, it got quite painful, so I had to get it looked at. I had a bone injury in my humerus.
“From there, I took a bit of time but wanted to get back for the US Open, the last Grand Slam of the year.
“The recovery was going well, I had a scan in the States and it looked all good, but then the pain was just too much when I got to the US, so I had to come home and take it really seriously. Take some time out. But now I feel like I am in a really good place, and I’m building up for hopefully 2026 being a great year.”
Despite his elongated spell on the sideline, Draper will still finish the year ranked inside the top ten; a feat made even more impressive given the small number of events he played across the entire year.
When will Jack Draper’s next tournament be?
Draper has already spoken before this particularly revealing interview, and in doing so, shared when his first tournament back would be.
After all, it has been just over two months since we last saw him play, with Draper struggling through against Sebastian Baez in four sets at the US Open, before then pulling out of the event.
In a rather surprising turn of events, Draper shared when his next tournament would be, revealing that he would feature before 2025’s conclusion.
The British number one will play at the UTS Grand Final in London this December, an event he won in 2023.
