Jack Draper has been told by Tommy Paul that his serve ‘isn’t fun to deal with’ (Image: GETTY)
Jack Draper has been told by Tommy Paul that his serve “isn’t fun to deal with”. Paul defeated the Briton in the cinch Championships quarter-finals at Queen’s Club on Friday after opting to stand as close to the advertising boards at the back of the court as he could for some of Draper’s serves in an attempt to handle the monster shots coming towards him.
Draper enjoyed a breathtaking victory over reigning Queen’s champion Carlos Alcaraz in the second round on Thursday to set up a clash with Paul.
The 22-year-old lost the opening set 3-6 against his American opponent, before winning the second 7-5. But Paul held his nerve in the decider to clinch it 6-4 and take one step closer to Sunday’s final.
And following his victory, the former Australian Open semi-finalist told the BBC: “I’m definitely playing some good tennis, I really like the grass.
“I knew today was going to be a battle, it’s never easy with Jack. He has been playing some amazing tennis. I’m really happy to get through that one.
“His serve is not fun to deal with. He plays very aggressive, takes you off your game. The key was to play my game and I think I did a pretty good job today.”
He then added: “I didn’t feel like the seed today. It helped, but I’m excited to watch the next match [between Sebastian Korda and Rinky Hijikata]. I’m going to play the winner so I will do a little studying.”
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Tommy Paul stood right at the back of the court when returning Jack Draper’s serve at Queen’s Club (Image: BBC)
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Draper was broken to love during his fourth service game of the third set, before Paul held to move 5-3 ahead.
And after losing back-to-back games, Draper launched the ball up into the sky and out of the Queen’s Club court, an action that could leave him with a £400 fine.
“He’s belted one and that’s just about outside Queen’s Club,” exclaimed BBC commentator Andrew Castle after the ball had left the 22-year-old’s racket. “And he’ll take a $500 fine for that just to release some tension.”
John Lloyd in the studio later said: “Are you talking about the ball that he’s hit 3000 miles up in the air? I thought that was great, I loved it. It got rid of the frustration. He needed it.
“Sometimes players have got to do that. I have no problem with that. As long as you direct it in the right place. Some players in the past have not directed it in the right place and they’ve ended up getting defaulted from the tournament.”
And Castle added: “There’s a housing estate over there and I can guarantee you that that ball isn’t there anymore. Mind you the wind comes in from the west and it did just hold up a little bit against the wind so it might be just on the scaffolding.”
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