Jack Draper delivers his verdict of how Jannik Sinner will perform at Wimbledon
Jack Draper believes Jannik Sinner is going to be ‘right in the groove’ at Wimbledon, despite the world No 1’s latest loss.
The Italian lost to the dangerous Alexander Bublik 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in his second-round match at the ATP 500 event in Halle.
Before the event, Sinner hadn’t lost before the quarter-finals of any event since falling to Ben Shelton in Shanghai in 2023.
However, the world No 1 has been the player to beat for the last 18 months and – as a result – leads Carlos Alcaraz by 2030 points at the top of the current rankings.
Another contender for Wimbledon is world No 6 Jack Draper, who secured his position as the fourth seed at the third Grand Slam of the year via a victory over Brandon Nakashima at Queen’s.
“I’m sure come Wimbledon, he’s [Jannik Sinner] is going to be right in the groove,” Draper said, when asked about the Italian’s form.
“Yeah, he’s not super-human. He’s going to lose certain matches, especially with the level of players out there, you know.”
“He’s barely lost many matches.
“I don’t know the stats. I think my coach showed me on Instagram something that he hasn’t lost to anyone apart from [Carlos] Alcaraz since Cincinnati. He’s been the most consistent, top player on the tour.”
“You know, grass is a very different surface. He’s obviously just come off the back of a French Open.”
Indeed, Sinner possesses a 19-2 record this year – despite the three-time Grand Slam champion serving a three-month ban from February until May for failing two doping tests in March 2024.
At the grass-court Grand Slam event, the Italian has reached the quarter-finals or better for the last three editions, with his best result being a semi-final showing in 2023 – losing in straight-sets to Novak Djokovic.
Bublik, himself, has had an impressive year, making the last eight at the French Open – falling to Jannik Sinner – and is a dark horse on any grass court.
“Playing on a greasy grass court against [Alexander] Bublik, someone I know full well from the French Open, he can come up with some amazing tennis from the serve and off the ground,” analysed Draper.
“So if he was locked in, I’m not surprised that that troubled Jannik [Sinner], because it is his first tournament on grass, and it is difficult to start off playing great tennis.”
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“I tried everything, but it couldn’t be, he was better in the key moments,” admitted Sinner, after his loss against the Kazakh.
“The truth is that after the defeat in Paris, it hasn’t been easy to compete here. I am relatively satisfied to have been able to play two matches on grass before Wimbledon.
“It’s time to take a break, I’m going to recover mentally and physically. I need some time for that and I think a break will be good for me. Mentally, I’ve been feeling good, but I’m a bit tired physically.
“Not every day is the same, we have to accept it and that’s it.”
