Jack Draper injury was ‘getting worse and worse’ with retirement ‘the right call’
Jack Draper’s injury woes have struck once again as he was forced to throw in the towel during his first-round match at the Barcelona Open.
Playing for the first time after a shock defeat to Reilly Opelka in his opening match at the Miami Open, Draper was seeded eighth for the ATP 500 event and earned a clash against the unseeded Tomas Martin Etcheverry.
There was not much between the two players in terms of their official positions in the ATP Rankings as the Brit is currently at No 28 with Etcheverry one place behind him.
The opening set was a real mixed bag in terms of serve as there were five breaks in total with Draper shading it 3-2 as he took the set 6-4 before the Argentine took it to a decider with a single break in game two of the second set.
Draper, though, was clearly struggling during that second set as “the knee just went” and, although he battled on until game six of the decider, he eventually quit with Etcheverry leading 4-6, 6-3, 4-1 with an hour and 46 minutes on the clock.
During Tennis TV’s commentator Naomi Cavaday told viewers: “Jack taking some time to think about it during the changeover and deciding that he couldn’t play anymore. I think it’s the right call.
“The knee just went very early in the second set, and he’s been pulling up, it’s just been getting worse and worse.”
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Barry Cowan added: “You really feel for him, he just can’t catch a break at the moment. We first noticed it at 2-0, 30-0 [in the second set]. I think it’s the right decision. Above all, you have to take care of your body. It just didn’t seem to make sense if it seemed to be getting worse.”
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It is another massive setback for the 24-year-old as he has played only three ATP Tour events so far this campaign as he started his season late due to a shoulder injury that has troubled him since Wimbledon last year.
After missing the Australian Open, he made his first appearance at the Dubai Tennis Championships and lost in the round of 16 before his Indian Wells Open title defence came to an end in the quarter-final.
That defeat to Daniil Medvedev resulted in a drop out of the top 20 of the ATP Rankings and he slumped further after losing in the second round of the Miami Open.
Draper didn’t have any points to defend in Barcelona so he is unlikely to suffer a massive drop as a result of his first-round exit.
His next event is due to be the ATP Masters 1000 Madrid Open, which gets underway next week, but it remains to be seen if he will feature.
