Andy Murray believes Jack Draper can climb to ‘top of the game’ in the next 18 months
“It’s funny how things turn out,” said Jamie Murray in Paris last week. “Go back 25 years and we had Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski to cheer for. Then Andy took over about 15 years ago. Now Jack’s coming through and it looks like he will be around for a while.”
Former doubles world No 1 Murray was talking about Jack Draper, the Surrey-born 20-year-old who will compete alongside Danish prodigy Holger Rune this week in the Next Gen Finals in Milan. Standing 6ft 4in, and flashing down his 130mph serve like leftie lightning, Draper has been a revelation in 2022.
Admittedly, he might not have emulated his friend and contemporary Emma Raducanu by lifting a major trophy while still a teenager. But Draper’s rise of 220 places in the rankings this season is not exactly shabby – and stands comparison to the 324 positions that Raducanu climbed in 2021.
His fan club is growing, too, with both Murray brothers talking him up last week. “He can be right up at the top of the game within the next 18 months,” was Andy’s conclusion.