Jack Draper after Australian Open exit: The injury was a ‘ticking bomb’

On January 19, 2025By Littum

January 19, 2025, 7:46 a.m. ET

Jack Draper described his hip injury as a “ticking time bomb” and admitted he will likely have to deal with it for the rest of his career after he limped out of the Australian Open on Sunday.

Draper retired after losing the first two sets to Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday, with the UK suffering from a flare-up of tendinitis, which he also battled in the preseason.

He started his 2025 Grand Slam campaign with three straight five-set matches in Melbourne and, after losing the first sets 7-5, 6-1 in the round of 16, decided enough was enough against world no. . 3.

“I’ve been incredibly surprised by how much I’ve been able to play and put my body through, more than I’ve ever done before,” said Draper, the 15th seed and last remaining British player.

“I think it’s just one of those things, just massive overload. This area of my body, if I don’t get it right and I don’t make good decisions, I’m not going to miss three or four months due to

“From the third game I felt it getting worse. I had several areas that were really in pain, and especially the hip.

“I didn’t feel great before my last fight, but of course I got out there and it felt OK. Maybe it’s a bit of a ticking time bomb, considering I had no preparation and no work for my body.

“I’ve come and I’ve played a ridiculous amount of tennis and I’m broke.”

Draper, 23, said he didn’t feel like the injury was a “long-term thing” at all, but that he has to be “sensible” because of the tennis program. However, he admitted that he expects to make it through his career.

“Everybody has their own areas where they struggle more than others and that’s my area that I’ll have to look after and manage for probably the rest of my career,” he added.

“I just want to do the best I can and hopefully get a run where I’m not playing with pain and taking painkillers.”

Alcaraz has set up a blockbuster showdown with Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals and said he felt sorry for his good friend Draper.

“It wasn’t the way I wanted to come through,” said the Spaniard. “Obviously I’m just happy to play another quarter-final, but a little bit sad for Jack.

“He’s a really nice person, he doesn’t deserve to be injured. He couldn’t prepare well at the start of the season. I’m pretty sure he’ll come back stronger like he always does and I just want him a speedy recovery.”

Further reading: