Sky Sports tennis commentator Laura Robson has cautioned Jack Draper that he must avoid arriving at the French Open "undercooked" after the British player pulled out of the upcoming ATP tournaments in Madrid and Rome due to a knee problem. Draper, who is currently the British No.2, was forced to retire from his first‑round match at the Barcelona Open on Monday when pain in his right knee flared up during his encounter with Tomas Martin Etcheverry. Following that setback, Draper announced that he will sit out this week’s Madrid Open as well as next month’s Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome.
Despite missing these key warm‑up events, the 2024 US Open semi‑finalist remains focused on the second Grand Slam of the season, Roland‑Garros, which takes place in late May. Robson stressed that skipping the Madrid and Rome stops could actually be beneficial, allowing Draper to fully recover and avoid the kind of rushed return that often leads to further injury.
Draper’s recent season has been a roller‑coaster. After a lengthy lay‑off caused by a chronic elbow issue that kept him out for most of the 2025 calendar year, he made a promising comeback at Indian Wells last month. In that tournament, the Brit stunned Novak Djokovic in the round of 16 before eventually falling to Daniil Medvedev in the quarter‑finals.
Robson praised Draper for taking the time to ensure his body was 100 per cent ready, noting that the knee trouble appears to be a tendon‑related problem that surfaced as a compensation for the earlier elbow rehab. "When you come back from a major injury you often over‑compensate in other areas," Robson explained to Sky Sports News. "Jack has been careful to address the underlying issue rather than just playing through the pain, which is why he chose to withdraw now rather than risk a more serious setback later." With the Madrid and Rome events off his schedule, Draper is likely to look for match practice in one of the smaller clay tournaments that take place the week before Roland‑Garros, such as Hamburg or Geneva.
Those events would give him a chance to test his fitness on the surface without the pressure of a Masters 1000 draw. Robson added that a brief two‑week rest period after the Barcelona retirement could be exactly what Draper needs to regain confidence on the court. "He wants to avoid walking into a best‑of‑five match at the French Open feeling undercooked," Robson said.
"A couple of weeks of targeted training, perhaps a few qualifying matches in Hamburg or Geneva, should give him the match intensity he needs before the big stage." The British tennis scene has seen other players withdraw as well. Emma Raducanu, the former US Open champion, also pulled out of the Madrid Open while she continues to recover from a post‑viral illness that first emerged during a tournament in Romania in early February.
Raducanu has since missed the WTA events in Miami and Linz, opting instead to focus on rehabilitation and regain full fitness. She recently skipped Great Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup tie against Australia for the same reason. Raducanu, now 23, last appeared on the tour at Indian Wells on March 8, where she suffered a heavy 6-1, 6-1 defeat to Amanda Anisimova.
In a recent interview, she admitted that the lingering effects of the viral infection have made it difficult to maintain a consistent training schedule, and she is uncertain when she will be ready to return to competitive play. "It’s hard to predict when I’ll be back," Raducanu said. "I tried to compete on the American hard courts but couldn’t sustain the level I need, so I decided to give myself more time.
The timing of my comeback is still up in the air, but I hope to be back soon because I want to be a draw for the early rounds and get back to top form." Coaching changes have also featured in Raducanu’s recent narrative. After parting ways with Francis Roig following her Australian Open exit, she has been working intermittently with Mark Petchey and hitting partner Alexis Canter.
Robson emphasized that Raducanu’s current obstacle is purely health‑related, not a lack of coaching support. "When you can’t train, the composition of your team matters less," she noted. "The priority is getting back to 100 per cent physically, then the coaching structure can be re‑established." Both Draper and Raducanu are expected to aim for a return to the tour in the spring, with the ultimate goal of competing at the French Open. While Draper is focusing on a measured clay‑court preparation to avoid entering Roland‑Garros underprepared, Raducanu hopes to regain her rhythm and confidence after a period of illness‑induced inactivity.
Fans can follow the developments on Sky Sports, which offers live coverage of ATP and WTA events, as well as on‑demand streaming via the NOW platform and the Sky Sports app. These services provide subscribers with increased access to live sport, ensuring that tennis enthusiasts can stay up‑to‑date with the latest news, scores, and match highlights as the European clay season unfolds.