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British number one Jack Draper says he is “feeling really good about himself” after putting his recent controversy behind him by strutting into the second round of the US Open in style.
Draper came into the tournament under a black cloud after events in Cincinnati, where he was accused of cheating and lying during a controversial match point against Felix Auger-Aliassime.
The 22-year-old, who was attacked on social media by players past and present, admitted he thought about it “non-stop” coming into Flushing Meadows but showed a clear mind as he dismantled an injured Zhizhen Zhang in the first round.
He was winning 6-3 6-0 4-0 when the Chinese, who fell over and hurt his left knee in practice, retired after suffering in the sweltering heat.
“Like I said, obviously it was a bit of a storm last week,” Draper said. “It definitely took a few days to physically recover from that weekend, mentally and emotionally and all those sort of things.
“In the last couple of days, I’ve sort of freshened up and put my mindset on competing here.
“I think today, I know he got injured and stuff, but I was ready to play my best tennis out there and I felt really, really good about myself.”
It would have been one of the hardest draws possible for 25th seed Draper had it not been for Zhang’s injury as he is one of the highest-ranked players he could have faced.
But he dominated from the off in his favourite grand slam, where he reached the fourth round last year.
It soon became clear Zhang was unfit and Draper won 11 games in a row to end the contest, with Zhang calling time midway through the third set.
“It’s always difficult to play someone who’s injured and slashing at the ball,” he said.
“So it’s obviously not ideal from his part, he’s obviously got a bit of an injury there.
“But from my point of view, my last three grand slams, my first round matches have been five sets so it’s kind of a nice feeling to maybe have one that was a little bit easier, and hopefully can settle me in.”
