“If he keeps playing like this, the sky is the limit.” This is what 18-time Grand Slam winner and legend Martina Navratilova said on rising British ATP pro Jack Draper after witnessing his phenomenal run at the US Open last September. It turned into a breakout tournament for him as he made it to the last four of a Slam for the first time. Unfortunately, he lost to the eventual winner, Jannik Sinner. But it was the event that teased what was about to come in 2025. This week, the World No.14 seems unstoppable at the Indian Wells. To be precise, he’s proved to be a nightmare for American tennis stars in the Californian desert. How? Ask Jason Brooksby, Taylor Fritz, and Ben Shelton. This coupled with the 23-year-old’s impressive semifinal debut has turned heads, including Navratilova’s. And then…
The young star recently got to share a wholesome moment with the tennis icon. The Czech-American former WTA pro took to her Instagram on Thursday while sharing a cute picture. It featured her alongside her pet dog Lulu and the Brit himself. He was seen holding Lulu gently, as she seemed quite happy to meet him. “Lulu has a new fan!!”, wrote Navratilova in a sweet caption, putting BNP Paribas Open as the location.
When Draper couldn’t move past Sinner in the US Open SF last season, Navratilova backed him very strongly. According to her, he’s capable of achieving a lot in his career. In an interaction with Sky Sports, dated September 8, she said, “he still kept it together, and he was in there. Jack gave it absolutely his all, and then some.”
After succumbing to the defeat, Draper also acknowledged his efforts. He wrote on social media, “I gave it everything I had yesterday but it wasn’t enough…I’m very proud of the progress I’m making with my team and I’ve still got so much to improve and learn… that motivates me so much !”
This season, it appears Draper is trying to make as many deep runs as possible. In January, he was just shy of reaching the QF down under before losing to Carlos Alcaraz in the fourth round. But a month later, he flipped the script, securing a place in the final of the Qatar Open. Sadly, he failed to lift the trophy after losing against Andrey Rublev. However, his form at the Indian Wells is on a different level. Especially against the American pros.
After thrashing another rising star, Joao Fonseca, in the first round, he began his ‘American hunt’ with Jason Brooksby in the R32. Draper beat him 7-5, 6-4 and then went on to eliminate World No.4 Taylor Fritz too. The Brit defeated him 7-5, 6-4 as well and locked his next target on Ben Shelton. In the QF on Thursday, Shelton failed to impress as Draper conquered him with a score line of 6-4, 7-5. Can we say he likes to face American ATP players?
Surely he does. Remember how he ousted three American pros last season on his way to clinch the title in Stuttgart? Back in June 2024, Draper beat Marcos Giron, Frances Tiafoe, and Brandon Nakashima in R16, QF, and SF respectively. And now, he’s just one match away from reaching his second straight final of 2025 after Qatar Open. But he’s got a tough encounter ahead.
Jack Draper to face Carlos Alcaraz in Indian Wells semifinal
Jack Draper is quite excited and feeling proud to reach his first ATP Masters 1000 semifinal this week. After ousting Ben Shelton, he expressed a relief of coming out stronger against an all-American crowd supporting the local star. “I knew coming out here facing him on on this court in front of the Americans was was going to be really difficult today and it was. Huge respect to him, huge credit him. He’s going to keep on winning, keep on having an amazing career, so I wish him all the best,” reported ATP’s website on March 14.
“It means so much to me,” he said of his deepest ATP Masters 1000 run. “It’s why I’m playing, why I put all the hard work in with my team — to play these matches on these courts and especially in a place like this. It’s what I’ve wanted since I was a kid and to be here now is a bit surreal.”
While he’s feeling great to make it so far, Draper’s journey is not finished yet. On Sunday, he will face a big-big challenge in the form of defending Indian Wells champion Carlos Alcaraz. He’s coming off the victory against Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo in the QF. Alcaraz has already dominated Draper once this year.
In January, the former World No. 1 defeated the current World No. 14 in the Australian Open Round of 16, with a decisive 7-5, 6-1 victory. This result extended the former World No. 1’s head-to-head advantage to 3-1. As a two-time BNP Paribas Open champion, he demonstrably holds an edge. The question now is whether he can leverage this advantage to reach his third consecutive final at this event.
Conversely, Jack Draper, who has surged three places to No. 11 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and is within reach of a top-10 debut with a finals appearance, will be seeking to avenge his Australian Open loss. The outcome of this match will determine if the former World No.1 continues his dominance or if Draper can reverse the trend and make a decisive statement.
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