John McEnroe reveals ‘oh my god’ verdict on certain Jack Draper characteristic
John McEnroe said he was shocked at the “physical specimen” Jack Draper had become having first met the British player when the latter was 14.
Draper is having an excellent 2025 so far and having won Indian Wells, the 23-year-old is looking to become the first Briton since Andy Murray to win Wimbledon.
As for his chances, three-time Wimbledon champion McEnroe believed Draper was definitely in contention.
“I’m very impressed with Jack Draper,” McEnroe said in his role as a commentator for the BBC. “I knew that he had a lot of talent. I didn’t realise he was that good an athlete. He’s really developed into a force. He is seeded four, he’s four in the world so to me, he’s the fourth favourite, without a doubt.
“And I think on this surface, he could play against anybody. Sinner’s not quite as comfortable on this surface as he is on the other surfaces.
“With Alcaraz, it would certainly be exciting if those two played. So he’s absolutely put himself in the mix which is going to add to the pressure.
“He doesn’t have to deal with those guys until the semis. That’s all you can ask for. I think he’s getting very close. I don’t think that he’s lacking anything in his game. There’s nothing he can’t do.”
McEnroe went on to state the one aspect he was most surprised by with Draper’s physicality vastly improving since the two first met.
“He was 14,” McEnroe recalled of their first encounter.. “He was like 5ft 1. The guy was tiny, so he had to work on everything, as all 14-year-olds do.
“He obviously had a lot of talent, you could see that. But I wasn’t quite sure why he was even there to be honest.
“And I’m still not 100% sure. I believe his dad was running the British LTA so it seemed like he was at least going to be taken care of, obviously.
“So that part seemed to be a non-issue. I’m not sure how tall his mum is, or exactly how tall his dad is. I didn’t see that happening where now it’s: ‘Oh, my God, Jesus Christ, this guy’s a physical specimen’.”
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But to win the tournament, Draper was told he must have “a little bit of luck” but also overcome the “nerves issue” that has troubled him in the past.
“It comes down to belief at a certain point, a little bit of luck. and also the nerves issue that’s been somewhat of an issue with him,” McEnroe said.
“He’s talked about it. The expectations are going to be way higher than they’ve ever been. So how is he going to handle that?
“And so that’s going to be a factor coming in. I took a look at the forecast. Looked like it’d be pretty warm, not super hot. So that could be fine. But at a certain point that could be a factor if it turns out to be really hot.”
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