Former Grand Slam champion Juan Martín del Potro has voiced his belief that Britain’s rising star Jack Draper has the talent to go toe‑to‑toe with the likes of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. However, del Potro cautioned that Draper’s progress hinges on regaining confidence in his own physical resilience. Del Potro, who lifted the US Open trophy in 2009 and spent time as world No. 3, knows all too well how injuries can derail a promising career.
The Argentine spent much of his later professional years battling chronic wrist and knee problems before finally hanging up his racket in 2022. His own experience gives weight to his advice for the 24‑year‑old Briton, who has already been earmarked as a future Grand Slam contender. According to del Potro, Draper’s next big challenge is not merely technical refinement but achieving a level of consistency, maintaining peak fitness, and handling the mounting expectations that accompany success on the sport’s biggest stages.
“He has the tennis to play well,” del Potro said, “but sometimes you need your body to respond to the highest intensity of the matches and tournaments every week.” The Argentine emphasized that a player’s physical health can become the single biggest obstacle in a career, noting that his own body issues were often the most frustrating part of his time on tour. Draper’s recent season has been a roller‑coaster of highs and setbacks. After a six‑month lay‑off caused by a bone‑stress injury in his left arm, the British player returned to competition in February. He quickly made a statement by defeating Novak Djokovic during his title defence at Indian Wells, propelling himself into the quarter‑finals and reminding the tennis world of his potential.
Yet the momentum was halted at the Miami Open, where he fell in straight sets to Reilly Opelka. In the weeks that followed, Draper’s schedule was repeatedly interrupted. He missed the Monte‑Carlo Masters, then retired in the deciding set of his Barcelona Open match against Tomas Martín Etcheverry.
A subsequent knee injury forced him to withdraw from the Mutua Madrid Open at La Caja Mágica. These physical setbacks have been compounded by bouts of anxiety and occasional on‑court sickness, issues that del Potro acknowledged as part of the modern athlete’s reality.
Despite these challenges, Draper’s talent remains evident. His left‑handed play gives him a natural advantage, as del Potro pointed out, and his performance in Madrid last year—reaching his first ATP Masters 1000 final on clay—proved he can adapt to different surfaces.
Although he ultimately lost to Casper Ruud in a three‑set thriller, the experience demonstrated that Draper possesses the tactical acumen and shot‑making ability required to compete at the highest level. Del Potro, speaking as part of his involvement with the Roland‑Garros Junior Series in Brazil, reflected on his own injury‑laden journey. Nicknamed “The Tower of Tandil,” he recalled preferring to face the sport’s elite—Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic—every day, even when his own body was giving him trouble.
“Injuries are part of our sport,” he said. “If you are an athlete, you have to know that the injuries will come anytime and that’s why you have to create a perfect team, not only a tennis coach, you need a physical trainer, a physio, a mental coach as well, and when the bad moments come, the faster that you can get out of it, the better.” The British contingent at the upcoming Madrid Open will be watching Draper closely.
The tournament, set to run from April 21 to May 4, will feature day sessions beginning at 9 a.m. and night sessions from 5:30 p.m., with the men’s final slated for May 3. In addition to the main draw, a temporary clay court will be installed at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium between April 23 and 30, allowing players to practice on conditions that mimic those at La Caja Mágica.
Other British players will also be in the mix. No.
1 Cam Norrie has enjoyed solid results this year, including a quarter‑final appearance at Indian Wells and a third‑round run at the Australian Open. Meanwhile, Katie Boulter entered the main draw after withdrawals from Emma Raducanu (illness) and Sonay Kartal (injury). Del Potro’s message to Draper is clear: talent alone will not carry him to the summit; he must rebuild trust in his body and assemble a comprehensive support team that can address physical, technical, and mental demands. If Draper can achieve that balance, del Potro believes British tennis is in capable hands and that the young left‑hander could soon be a regular fixture in the latter stages of the sport’s biggest events, challenging the current generation of stars on equal footing.