British number one Jack Draper sees off Frances Tiafoe to reach Stuttgart semis
Jack Draper celebrated his elevation to British number one by beating defending champion Frances Tiafoe to reach the semi-finals of the Boss Open in Stuttgart.
Draper’s run in Germany coupled with Cameron Norrie’s shock loss to Jack Pinnington Jones in Nottingham means the 22-year-old will top the domestic standings for the first time on Monday.
He will also hit a new career high in the low 30s, potentially enough to earn him a seeding at Wimbledon, after battling to a 5-7 6-4 7-6 (1) victory over American Tiafoe.
Draper will next face Tiafoe’s compatriot Brandon Nakashima in his seventh ATP Tour semi-final.
The manner of victory was particularly satisfying for Draper, who lost matches at three successive tournaments on deciding tie-breaks earlier this season but played a superb one this time.
“I’m incredibly happy,” he said in an on-court interview broadcast by Sky Sports. “My last three (deciding) tie-breaks, I lost them all, so to come through today was really amazing and I’m really proud of my efforts.”
Draper also hit a career-high 31 aces, adding: “I’m really happy with the way I served and the way I played. It was a really high-quality match.”
Tiafoe edged an incredibly tight opening set before the pair were forced off court by rain early in the second set.
Draper played a brilliant returning game to break serve at 5-4 after play resumed and put the disappointment of missing a match point at the same stage of the deciding set behind him in a tie-break full of explosive shots.
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