Jack Draper has said he has “too much respect” to start yelling at Andy Murray when the three-time Grand Slam champion appears in his box during the grass season. The former world No. 4 is making his comeback at the Eastbourne Open, where he faces No. 5 seed Brandon Nakashima in his opening match on Monday.
Murray joins Draper's team
Murray joined Draper’s team for the grass swing, while the 24-year-old’s former coach, James Trotman, who works with the LTA, is also assisting him. During his own playing days, former world No. 1 Murray was known for ranting at his box during frustrating moments. But there will be none of that from Draper.
“I don’t think so. Maybe a few times I’ve said something to my team, but it’s mainly anger at myself,” the three-time title winner said about the potential of screaming at Murray and co. “I’ve never been someone who goes off at my team, because I have a great relationship with all of them. I have too much respect for Andy and Trots to be doing that.”
But the former No. 4, who has fallen well outside of the top 100 after suffering from arm and knee injuries, might give it a go as a joke. “I think he’d laugh at that sort of stuff. Maybe I’ll do it just to get a laugh out of him,” Draper grinned.
Injury struggles and comeback
Murray’s presence has provided a much-needed boost for the former Indian Wells champion, who has spent the better part of 10 months on the sidelines. Bone bruising in his left arm forced Draper to shut down his 2025 season in August. He has played just a handful of tournaments this year, but retired mid-match at the Barcelona Open in April with a knee injury. Now, Draper is planning to stay out on the match court for the foreseeable future, with no more breaks.
“I guess when you have a long-term injury, you sort of have to come to terms with the fact that something might not go away, and you have to play with it, as long as it's not getting worse and worse. As long as it's sort of staying at a level, then you have to be able to play through it,” he explained.
Biomechanical changes with Murray
Two-time Olympic champion Murray has helped Draper tweak his game to avoid more physical issues. “Definitely since Andy's come on board, he's taken a look at my tennis and definitely worked on some stuff, biomechanical changes on my serve,” he explain. “I think we've worked on some stuff on my serve, which seems to be really helping. I think his tennis knowledge is incredible, but more so as well, I think, especially in the place I'm at right now, where my tennis is actually in a really, really good spot.
“It's just, I lost a lot of confidence in, sort of, my body in a way, over the last year that I'm rebuilding back again, and having someone who believes in you as a person, as a player who's one of your biggest inspirations. Obviously, I have a great relationship with him off the court, but our relationship, I would say, is very special, and so that gives me a bit more energy, especially in a moment where I'm coming back and I need to, I need to have that good energy around me.”
Looking ahead to Wimbledon
Draper will face Nakashima in the second match on centre court on Monday before turning his attention to Wimbledon, where he has never been beyond round two. “I’m coming back to the point where I’m gonna stay on court from now,” the Brit declared. “I don’t know how these competitions are going to go in terms of my wins and the losses, which is hard to say, because obviously, it’s two tournaments I want to do incredibly well at. I’m very much on a build again to get myself back to where I want to be. I feel like I’m able to be the player I want to be again on the court, which is a really great thing after a year of struggle.”
