Tim Henman makes bold Jack Draper Grand Slam prediction after Indian Wells win
Former British No 1 Tim Henman backed Jack Draper to win more ATP Masters 1000 tournaments and challenge for Grand Slam titles after his sensational win in Indian Wells.
The 23-year-old Brit powered past Denmark’s Holger Rune 6-2, 6-2 in a BNP Paribas Open final that lasted just an hour and eight minutes.
After his win against Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-finals, Draper came out with all guns blazing in the final and Rune had no answer to his power-packed game as he stormed to the biggest win of his career.
“It’s incredible. I wasn’t expecting this,” Draper said afterwards on Sky Sports.
“I put in a lot of work over time and I’m just so grateful and so happy to be out here, to be able to play, my body feeling healthy, to feel great in the mind.
“All the work I’ve done over the last few years feels like it’s coming together on the big stage, and I can’t put that into words.”
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Draper also spoke to the Tennis Channel, as he reflected on how far he has come to get to this point in his career.
“This just means the absolute world to me, yeah, beyond words,” the rising star said.
“I felt calm from the start today. I almost felt better on it than I did off it.
“My issue was never my tennis. It was my body. I wasn’t ready to be a top player week-in, week-out. I was still learning and last year was my first proper year on the tour.
“Reaching the semi-finals of the US Open made me feel I deserved to be here.”
The hype machine around England’s best tennis players in several generations will now move into overdrive and Henman didn’t hold back in his praise for the new world No 7.
“Absolutely brilliant performance. It’s been building, not just in this tournament but over the last weeks, months and years,” Henman told Sky Sports.
“It’s been great to see Jack come out and deliver time and again in the tournament where he didn’t have the easiest draw.
“He absolutely took Rune apart 6-2, 6-2 to win his first Masters title, this is a day he will remember forever.
“Enjoy this moment, soak it up. He’s had a lot of humps in the road on his journey. The vast majority of people lose every week.
“This is the first of many Masters 1000 titles and he can be in the finals of Grand Slams and he can win Grand Slams. Onwards and upwards for Jack.”
Former British No 1 Laura Robson was also full of priase for Draper, as she suggested he has learned how to deal with the pressure of big matches.
“Draper can be so proud of how he handled the situation today,” she told Sky Sports Tennis.
“We’re guilty of making a big deal about his anxiety, especially after his performance in the second set of the semi-final.
“We were worried, when you saw him in the buggy on the way to the court, he looked very nervous.
“I hoped it wouldn’t affect his play, but it didn’t in the slightest. It’s just amazing, an amazing result for him!”
Draper will now head into the Miami Open oozing with confidence after he served up a sensational collection of performances in Indian Wells.
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