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 mobility issues and eventually withdrew from the match, trailing 4-1 in the third set. Draper, who is ranked higher than Etcheverry, had shown promise in the first set but was clearly hindered by a knee issue from the start of the second set. Etcheverry, who had recently pushed world No 2 Carlos Alcaraz to three sets, took control of the match and expressed admiration for Draper's competitive spirit.
Draper's injury marks a setback in his return to the ATP Tour, having only recently come back from a left-arm injury that kept him sidelined since last August's US Open. He is scheduled to play in the ATP Masters 1000 event in Madrid later this month. Meanwhile, British No 1 Cameron Norrie secured a hard-fought three-set victory over three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, winning 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-4. Norrie will face American Ethan Quinn in the next round.
In other news, Katie Boulter advanced to the last 16 of the Rouen Open with a dominant 6-2 6-2 win over Maria Timofeeva and is targeting a strong run in the tournament.