Jack Draper’s return from injury is imminent after the star was forced to miss three months of the season due to an arm injury.
Draper returns to tennis at the UTS Grand Finals for the first time since withdrawing from the US Open in September.
The British number one enjoyed a breakthrough season before his injury troubles, which included a first Masters title at Indian Wells as well as a career-high of world number four.
Ahead of his return to the sport, Tim Henman has predicted how long it will take for Draper to get back up to speed.
Tim Henman dampens expectations with Jack Draper’s tennis return
Draper was tipped to challenge Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner before his injury, but Henman believes it will take some time before he’s able to reach that level now.
Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: “I think it’s important that he remains patient and perhaps we remain patient. He has missed a lot of tennis, and fundamentally, he has not really played since Wimbledon.”
Henman believes it will take multiple tournaments before Draper hits the heights he was showing at the beginning of the year.
“So to start building up the match count on the match court, it might take him four, five or six tournaments to find his rhythm again and get used to those matches. But he is a class player and the form I’m sure will return.”
Draper is set for the UTS Grand Finals, the United Cup, and the Auckland Open ahead of the Australian Open.
The star has also been confirmed for Queen’s, his home tournament in London, where he reached the semi-finals this year.
Jack Draper ends the season on a high despite injury woes
Despite missing three months of the season, Draper has still managed to finish the year inside the top 10 of the rankings.
Draper is the world number 10 at the end of the season, becoming just the fourth British man to achieve that feat since 2000.
The British number one joins Tim Henman, Andy Murray, and Cameron Norrie as top ten players at the end of the season.
He was just one place away from qualifying for the ATP Finals, which is incredibly impressive considering how much tennis he missed.
If Draper can recapture his 2025 form for a whole season in 2026, the sky is the limit for the British star.
