Throughout the early days of Jack Draper’s young career, questions around his physical preparedness for his chosen sport followed him wherever he went. As he continually struggled with injuries and endurance issues alike, Draper never failed to hear from those who believe he did not work hard enough, carry himself with sufficient professionalism or care enough about his craft.
Those days are over. Forever. For the third straight match in Melbourne, despite his stunted preparation and the rust that caked his game, Draper made his commitment and passion plain to see as he left everything out on the court and somehow found a way to drag himself across the finishing line of yet another frantic five-set match he seemed destined to lose, drawing on his endless reserves of grit and heart in the process.
