ATP Tour

Draper: Most players don't bully me, Cilic did

Jack Draper may have arrived at Wimbledon with high hopes, but his wait to advance past the second round at home continues.

The British No. 1 fell to former finalist and ex-World No. 3 Marin Cilic on Thursday, and addressed his concerns in a candid post-match press conference. Despite reaching the semi-final at the ATP 500 at Queen’s Club two weeks ago, Draper feels he had plenty more to give on the grass.

“I've been really disappointed with the way my game's been on the grass this year, in all honesty,” Draper said. “I wasn't feeling too great at Queen's. I don't know how I made the semis there and gave myself a chance of making the final.

“It highlighted to me this year that I really struggled on the grass. I felt great on the hard, felt great on the clay. My game, I felt like there weren't many holes, whereas, as soon as I came onto the grass, I felt a big difference. So it's just something that I've got to keep in mind, how I'm going to develop my game for the long-term for next year.”

Draper was full of respect for Cilic, the former Wimbledon finalist and US Open champion, who hit 53 winners, including 16 aces, and dropped 13 of 59 first-serve points.

“He’s been Top 10 for many, many years. He's always been someone who's just been the ultimate pro and can play incredible," Draper said of Cilic. "I don't play many people on the Tour that I feel like they completely bully me and take the racquet out of my hand.”

Draper is at a career-high No. 4 in the PIF ATP Rankings and has reason to be proud of a stellar rise over the past 12 months, highlighted by winning the ATP Masters 1000 title in Indian Wells and reaching the semi-finals at the US Open.

Yet, with a stunning rise like his comes expectation, and at SW19, there are not many bigger spotlights than on the top-ranked player in the country. Experiencing this has made Draper acknowledge the great achievements of countryman and two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray.

“It makes me think that Andy's achievement of what he did winning here twice, [is] just unbelievable,” said Draper when asked of the expectation. “It's not the pressure, it's not whatever. I just didn't play good enough today. I lost to a better player.

By reaching the final on the clay of Madrid and the fourth round at Roland Garros, Draper has adapted well to the surface that was once his most difficult. The Briton also won two titles on hard courts, and his first crown came on grass in Stuttgart last year, showing that he can succeed across all surfaces.

Yet, after his 4-6, 3-6, 6-1, 4-6 defeat to Cilic in their maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash, Draper acknowledged that there are plenty of improvements to be made to fulfill his potential on grass.

“I think there's a bit of a misconception, just because I'm a 6' 4" lefty, I must be incredible on grass,” said Draper. “I obviously won Stuttgart, but I haven't had loads of experience on it. I don't think I played incredibly well on it before. I've never gone past the second round here.

“I'm obviously very determined to change that and make it a surface that is going to be great for me. I feel like that's the way with every surface. When you have the mindset of, even though I don't feel comfortable, I'm going to make it happen, I'm going to make it better for me, it usually works. That's what I did on the clay this year.”

Draper will leave Wimbledon with a 29-9 record on the year and fourth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. He is aiming to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time and currently holds a tight 260-point lead over fifth-placed Novak Djokovic, who is into the third round.

With World No. 5 Taylor Fritz and No. 6 Djokovic still in the Wimbledon draw, Draper could drop in the rankings, dependent on their respective runs.