Coverage spread: 2 sources — 1 left · 1 international
Lean ratings via AllSides / Media Bias-Fact-Check. How this works.
Where they agree
- Draper lost 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 to Térence Atmane in the first round in Montreal, his first match since June after withdrawing from Wimbledon with a bruised bone in his left arm.
- Draper was visibly emotional, crying during a changeover in the third set as his level and serve dropped noticeably.
- His participation in the Cincinnati Open (where he holds a wildcard) and the US Open is now in doubt.
- Jacob Fearnley won his first-round match against Adrian Mannarino 7-6, 6-4 to advance in Montreal.
Where they differ
- The BBC gives a fuller injury timeline, noting Draper’s ranking fell from No 4 to as low as 160th and that he played without his usual compression sleeve.
- The Guardian additionally reports Carlos Alcaraz’s withdrawal from the Cincinnati Masters due to a wrist injury, folding it into the same story; the BBC does not mention Alcaraz.
- The BBC includes direct quotes from Jessica Pegula about Draper’s health and their US Open mixed doubles plans; the Guardian omits her comments entirely.
- The two reports differ on the stated US Open start date, with the BBC citing August 23 and the Guardian citing August 30.
Jack Draper broke down in tears during his first competitive match since June, losing 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 to France’s Térence Atmane in the first round of the Canadian Open in Montreal. The British No 1, playing on a wildcard after months sidelined by a bruised bone in his left arm, appeared to be struggling physically again in the third set, raising fresh doubts about his fitness for Cincinnati and the US Open.
What happened on court?
Draper, 24, took the match to three sets and looked at times like his old self. He lost the first set 6-3, then rallied to take the second 6-2 with a run of aggressive forehands that drew loud approval from the Montreal crowd. In the third set, though, his level dropped sharply: he surrendered the opening game after leading 40-15, missed a break-point chance with a forehand into the net, and was broken again to fall behind 4-1. During the following changeover he was seen wiping away tears, visibly upset. Atmane closed out the match and will next face Karen Khachanov in the second round.
Why is Draper’s arm such a big deal?
Draper has been dealing with a persistent injury to his left arm since hurting his shoulder at last year’s US Open. The issue has been described as bone bruising that has proven difficult to resolve and has repeatedly forced him out of tournaments: he withdrew from this year’s Wimbledon and pulled out of the Washington Open as he tried to return. Montreal marked his first appearance since June, and notably the first time in his recent comeback attempts that he played without the compression sleeve he had been wearing for support. The toll of the injury on his career has been dramatic — he reached a career-high ranking of world No 4 last June but has since dropped as low as 160th in the space of a year.
What does this mean for Cincinnati and the US Open?
Draper holds a wildcard entry into the Cincinnati Open, which starts next week, but both outlets say his participation is now in serious doubt after this setback. The bigger concern is the US Open, the final Grand Slam of the year, which the BBC reports begins August 23 and the Guardian reports begins August 30. Draper had been expected to team up again with American Jessica Pegula in the US Open’s revamped mixed doubles event, after the pair reached the semi-finals in 2025. Speaking at her pre-tournament press conference in Toronto, Pegula said she was aware Draper had “a really tough day” in Montreal and that his health needs to come first. She said she hoped he could get healthy again, adding that they are still supposed to play together in New York but that it remains to be seen whether that happens.
How are other British and top players faring?
There was better news elsewhere for British tennis. Jacob Fearnley, Britain’s number five, beat France’s Adrian Mannarino 7-6, 6-4 to reach the second round in Montreal, where he is set to face the Czech Republic’s Jakub Menšík (referred to as Jakub M in one report). Separately, world No 2 Carlos Alcaraz has withdrawn from the Cincinnati Masters as he continues recovering from a wrist injury that has kept him out of action since April. Alcaraz had been expected to use Cincinnati as his tune-up event ahead of the US Open.
Why this matters
Draper’s struggles highlight how fragile a young player’s rise can be: a top-four ranking and a US Open semi-final run in 2024 have given way to a year largely lost to injury. With the US Open just weeks away and both Draper and Alcaraz — two of the sport’s most talked-about rising stars — dealing with unresolved physical issues, the tournament’s build-up is now shadowed by uncertainty over who will actually be fit enough to compete at full strength.
Sources
Featured photo: si.robi via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)