| Dates: 16-29 January Venue: Melbourne Park |
| Coverage: Daily radio commentaries on 5 Sports Extra/BBC Sport website and app, with selected live text commentaries and match reports on the website and app |
Jack Draper’s love for Rafael Nadal stretched so far as a kid he even used to copy the serial Grand Slam champion’s iconic sleeveless shirt and headband look.
Now, the 21-year-old Briton is preparing to share of a court with one of his “heroes” when he faces Nadal – the defending champion and top seed – on his Australian Open debut.
A confident and assured character who does not possess a hint of arrogance, Draper truly believes he can cause an upset.
The left-hander has been one of the fastest climbers on the ATP Tour in the past six months, moving inside the world’s top 40 after being ranked 262nd a year ago.
Notable victories came against top-10 players Stefanos Tsitsipas and Felix Auger-Aliassime at the back end of last year, while he has started this season by reaching the semi-finals of a warm-up tournament for the Australian Open in Adelaide.
Beating 36-year-old Nadal, who admits he is “vulnerable” after winning only once in his past seven matches, would propel Draper further towards superstardom.
“There is one side of it where he is the 22-time Grand Slam champion, one of the greatest of all time. But at the same time he’s one of my competitors now,” said Draper.
“I was thinking on the plane over, I’ve come a long way myself, but I’ve got to put it out my mind who I’m playing and go out and try and do the best I can.”
Without Nadal – or Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and British hero Andy Murray – Draper says he would not be the player he is.
But it is not just iconic tennis stars who Draper continues to draw inspiration from.
“When I was a kid, I was always intrigued by people who were great in their own sport,” he told BBC Sport at Melbourne Park.
“Michael Jordan, Ayrton Senna, Conor McGregor when he was on the come-up, all those athletes who have achieved great things in their sport.
“I find their journeys and mentality so interesting and I have watched a lot of documentaries on that sort of thing.
“I watched the Senna doc and, although there was such a sad end, that was amazing; it inspired me a lot.
“From watching that, and other docs, I’ve learned from their ability to deal with adversity, to deal with things that are tough mentally and the things it takes to be a professional athlete.”
A family guy who loves his labradoodle
As a massive Manchester United fan, Draper also has a keen interest in football and enjoyed chatting with England midfielder Declan Rice at a recent event for a glossy fashion magazine.
But Draper says he is happiest when he is hanging out at home with family, friends and his labradoodle who is called, rather aptly this week, Aussie.
He describes himself as a “big family guy” who loves being a “normal 21-year-old” when he is back home in the UK.
Spending time at home starts to become a rare luxury for a top tennis player who lives on the road, though, and Draper is beginning to experience that more as he embarks on what is still only his first full season on the ATP Tour.
The nature of the sport means it can be difficult for some younger players to forge friendships with people of a similar age, with the majority of the time being spent with people in their team – coaches, physio, fitness trainers – who are usually older.
Draper’s coach James Trotman understands the importance of helping the youngster develop as a person as well as an athlete.
“We talk about him forming relationships with other players on tour who are going through the same thing and maintaining his relationships with some of his friends already in British tennis,” Trotman told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Australian Open preview show.
“We get on great. He’s got a good sense of humour.
“We will talk about sport, we will talk about what’s happening in the UK in the news, he likes playing cards. I also managed to ‘drag’ him to an art exhibition in Adelaide. There is always something going on.”
A ‘physical specimen’ aiming to put fitness issues behind
While Draper is only just breaking through at the highest level, he has been well known in British tennis circles for a long time through strong family connections.
Draper’s mother Nicky – who the player credits as one of his biggest influences – is a coach and former junior champion, while father Roger was the chief executive of the Lawn Tennis Association.
Draper himself first caught the attention of a wider British public with a run to the Wimbledon junior final in 2018.
But a series of physical issues held back his progress in the following years, notably when he collapsed at the Miami Open in 2021 with a heat-related illness.
Last year, he was also forced to retire from his US Open third-round match when in a decent position against Russian 28th seed Karen Khachanov.
Developing his body for the rigours of the ATP Tour has been a priority, leading to the hiring of former Olympic sprinter and bobsleigher Dejan Vojnovic as his fitness coach.
“When I first met him, he was a feisty competitor but he was quite small,” said Trotman, who has known Draper since he was a teenager.
“Now he’s 6ft 4in and a physical specimen, but he didn’t grow until a little later than most.
“Everyone knows his potential but when we started working together, 15 months or so ago, one of the main goals was for him to stay fit and try to compete for 12 months.
“Without that, I don’t think he would be where he is today. The biggest change was getting him healthy and competing.”
While Draper continues his physical development, there are few questions over his talent and mentality.
Former world number one Murray has trained and practised regularly with Draper, saying he “knows how good” the younger player already is.
“Jack is a big server, he’s a big guy and plays with a lot of top-spin as well,” said the three-time Grand Slam champion.
“It is a great opportunity for him against Rafa to go out there and see exactly where he’s at.”
Former British number one Laura Robson describes Draper as a “tennis keeno”, while Davis Cup team-mate Dan Evans says he has been impressed by his younger colleague’s growing maturity.
“I think he is pretty calm. A loss is a loss, a win is a win. It is not too high, it is not too low,” said Evans.
“I think that it is a good thing that tennis is not the be-all and end-all and his perspective is good on life as well.”
Following in Nadal’s footsteps as a world number one and Grand Slam champion is the target for Draper.
But as he has also learned from the Spaniard – and other sporting greats – it is equally important to be humble.
“Above everything else, I want to be a good person at the end of it all,” he said.
