Jack Draper faces French Open fitness race as knee injury worries deepen

Jack Draper has been sidelined for at least another month as injuries continue to disrupt his hopes of establishing himself as one of the top players in the world.

Draper has withdrawn from the Madrid Open this week and the subsequent Italian Open due to the aggravated knee tendon injury that forced him to retire from his opening match at the Barcelona Open last week.

Although he will miss most of the clay-court season, Draper is still aiming to compete at Roland Garros, which begins in five weeks on 24 May. He is considering entering one of the tournaments scheduled a week before the French Open.

“An aggravated tendon in my knee means I am not able to play in Madrid and Rome,” Draper said in a statement. “It’s frustrating for sure but I am thankful it isn’t anything more serious, recovery is going well and I feel good about my chances of being fit for Roland Garros. I am looking forward to building momentum from there!!”

This latest injury represents another painful blow for Draper, whose body has continually struggled to withstand the rigours of professional tennis. Now 24 years old, Draper has enjoyed very few extended periods of good health. He returned to competition in February after a six-month injury layoff due to a tricky bone bruise injury in his left arm, the most significant injury of his career.

Since his return at the beginning of February, Draper has understandably been extremely careful with his scheduling, competing in four tournaments plus one Davis Cup match. Despite his caution, and the apparent progress he has made with the arm injury, Draper could not finish his first match of the clay-court season, retiring in the third set of his match against Tomás Martín Etcheverry.

It was not until the second half of 2024, at 22 years old, that Draper was physically able to compete on the tour with any sort of regularity. Being able to train and compete consistently for about a year provided a platform for Draper to reach his first grand slam semi-final at the US Open that year and then win his first Masters 1000 title at Indian Wells last year.

At Wimbledon last year, Draper’s final tournament before his six-month layoff, he sat at a career high ranking of No 4. He will now likely fall out of the top 70 since he cannot defend the significant points haul he earned from reaching the final of Madrid and the quarter-finals of Rome last year. There is no doubt that Draper has the talent to quickly rise back up the rankings. It remains to be seen whether his body will allow it.