Jack Draper ready to handle heat at Australian Open
The 23-year-old has adopted new techniques to try to be at his physical best.
Jack Draper feels ready to handle the heat in Melbourne after a disrupted build-up to the Australian Open.
Expectations for the British number one have soared since his run to the semi-finals of the US Open last summer and he goes into the first grand slam of the new season as the 15th seed and a dark horse.
Draper was unable to start his season as planned at the United Cup because of a hip problem picked up in winter training, which also forced him to miss a week in Spain with Carlos Alcaraz.
Key to Draper’s hopes will be how he copes in the Melbourne heat, with the 23-year-old ending a five-set win in the first round here last year by vomiting into a court-side bin.
He attributed that largely to stress, an explanation he repeated after again being hit by sickness during his US Open semi-final loss to Jannik Sinner, although he now believes that was more a reaction to painkillers.
But physical endurance in hot conditions remains an issue, and it is something Draper has been addressing even while stuck at home in the cold.
He told the PA news agency: “This year I’ve really tried to do different things. Obviously I’m from a country where we’re inside a lot and it’s cold, and especially coming into a tournament like this where it is really hot, we don’t get a lot of that exposure.
“But I’ve been really trying to get that exposure, whether I was in the UK doing lots of heat sauna stuff and bikes in hot bubbles, and obviously coming out here two-and-a-half weeks before, that’s quite a lot of time to adapt.
“I’ve got a lot of heat training in and I feel good. I’ve been working hard on different techniques with my breathing. I’m a young player, I’m still trying to understand how I operate best in all areas.
“It’s not just the tennis, it’s a big mental game as well and it’s how we recover after points and it’s how we deal with stress in general, whether that be the tennis or the conditions. I think my prep for the heat this year has been a lot better than previous years.”
Draper has already decided not to play in Britain’s Davis Cup clash against Japan following the Australian Open because of the need to take care of his hip, but he insisted it will not hold him back here.
“It’s not ideal preparation,” he said at a press conference ahead of a clash with Argentina’s Mariano Navone on Monday.
“I had to miss a fair bit of my pre-season, the time when I wanted to rebuild my body for this next coming year. That’s what happens sometimes in sport. The last two-and-a-half weeks have been really positive.
“I have put in some really good preparation, got a lot of load for my body. I’ve had some great hits as well, so I feel really good about my tennis. There’s no reason why, come Monday, I can’t be playing some really good stuff.
“I wouldn’t be competing if I didn’t feel like I can go 100 per cent. I definitely built a lot of belief at the end of last year. I feel confident coming here.
“I just feel more calm in myself, especially coming to these big events knowing that my level is really high. I feel like I’ve improved my base level, as well, which is really important. I feel a lot stronger and mentally in a really good place, ready to hopefully have some really good results here.”
Among Draper’s practice partners this week have been world number one Sinner and Novak Djokovic, a session watched over by the Serbian’s new coach Andy Murray.
“It was amazing to be on court with Novak and Andy, especially,” said Draper. “Jannik I hit with a couple of days ago. They just bring such a high quality to the practice court, as well. It’s really great to be able to spar with that kind of level of intensity and work ethic.”
