Jack Draper's clay-court season got off to a disappointing start as he was forced to retire due to injury in the decisive third set of his first-round match against Argentina's Tomas Martin Etcheverry at the Barcelona Open. Despite taking the first set 6-3, Draper struggled with mobility issues and had to have his right knee taped by a physio during the break between sets. However, after losing the second set 6-3, Draper found himself trailing 4-1 in the third set before withdrawing from the match. Draper, ranked one spot higher than his opponent, had a promising start but was clearly hindered by his knee from the beginning of the second set, allowing Etcheverry to take control.
Etcheverry praised Draper, saying, "He was playing unbelievably... He's a great competitor, a great fighter, and hopefully, he can recover soon to get back on tour because the tour likes him." This was only Draper's fourth tournament back on the ATP Tour since a left-arm injury kept him sidelined since last August's US Open.
Draper is next scheduled to play at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Madrid from April 22, where he reached the final last year before losing to Casper Ruud. Meanwhile, British No 1 Cameron Norrie secured a spot in the second round after a grueling three-set match against three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka. Norrie won the first set 6-4, but Wawrinka took the second set to a tiebreak, forcing a deciding set.
Norrie emerged victorious, breaking Wawrinka's serve in the third set to win 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-4. Norrie will now face American Ethan Quinn in the second round. "I was not feeling well physically, so I had to dig deep mentally," Norrie said. "I had to get fired up in some moments, and I managed to do that in the third set when I was a couple of break points down." 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.
Boulter is targeting a good run in Rouen, potentially aiming for her first clay-court title.