Jack Draper's clay-court season got off to a disappointing start as he was forced to retire due to injury in the deciding set of his first-round match against Tomas Martin Etcheverry at the Barcelona Open. Despite taking the first set 6-3, Draper struggled with movement issues and eventually withdrew from the match, trailing 4-1 in the third set. Draper, who is ranked one spot higher than Etcheverry, had shown promise early on but was hindered by a knee problem from the start of the second set.
Etcheverry, who recently pushed world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz to three sets in Monte Carlo, took control of the match after Draper's injury worsened. 'He's a great competitor and a fantastic fighter,' Etcheverry said of Draper. 'I hope he can recover soon and get back on tour.' This was only Draper's fourth tournament since returning from a left-arm injury that kept him out since last August's US Open.
He is scheduled to play next at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Madrid, where he was a finalist last year. Meanwhile, British No. 1 Cameron Norrie booked his place in the second round with a hard-fought three-set victory over three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka. Norrie won 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-4, securing the only break of serve in the deciding set.
'I wasn't feeling great physically, but I had to dig deep mentally,' Norrie said. He will face American Ethan Quinn in the next round.
In other news, Katie Boulter eased into the last 16 of the Rouen Open with a dominant 6-2 6-2 win over Maria Timofeeva. Boulter is targeting a strong run in Rouen, potentially aiming for her first clay-court title.