Jack Draper’s 2026 season is off to a terrible start before it has even begun after the British No1 was forced to withdraw from the Australian Open with injury.
The 24-year-old is yet to take the court since pulling out before his second match of the US Open in August as bone bruising in his left arm continues to trouble him. For a man who has struggled to stay fit throughout his short career, this is yet another devastating blow.
‘Unfortunately, me and my team have decided not to head out to Australia this year. It’s a really tough decision – its one of the biggest tournament in our sport,’ he said.
‘However I’ve had this injury for a long time. I’m at the very, very end stages of the process and to step back on court into best of five set tennis so soon just doesn’t seem like a smart decision.
‘I’ve been through a fair amount of setbacks so far but, by far and away, this one’s been the most difficult, the most challenging, the most complex. It always seems to make me more resilient, more hungry, to make me want to become the player I want to become. I’m looking forward to getting back out there in 2026 and competing.’
Wind the clock back to April and Draper looked every inch the rising force in tennis; perhaps even the man to break the Alcaraz/Sinner duopoly. He had just reached the final of the Madrid Open, rising to world No5 and proving he could be a threat on every surface.
Jack Draper has been forced to withdraw from the 2026 Australian Open due to bone bruising
He last played in the second round of the US Open, where he withdrew back in August
A month earlier he had won the biggest title of his career in Indian Wells, crushing Alcaraz in the process with the Spaniard admitting he was fearful of Draper’s muscular game.
What we did not know at the time – Draper himself had only the vaguest idea – was that his left humerus was beginning to bruise. That affected him during a sub-par grass season, after which he gave himself time to heal. He gave the US Open a go but it was clear in a laboured victory over Argentine journeyman Federico Gomez that Draper was not right. He called his season early but planned to return at the exhibition Ultimate Tennis Showdown earlier in December.
As soon as he withdrew from that casual affair, alarm bells were ringing for Australia and the bomb fell on Boxing Day.
In October, Draper appeared to pin the blame on the gruelling tennis calendar – very much the issue du jour in the game. ‘Injuries are going to happen… we are pushing our bodies to do things they aren’t supposed to in elite sport,’ he posted.
‘We have so many incredible younger guys on the tour right now and I’m proud to be a part of that, however, the tour and the calendar have to adapt if any of us are gonna achieve some sort of longevity.’
There is much in what he says but it is the same for every player and Draper has had far more than his fair share of physical issues. A serious shoulder problem in 2023, hip pain this time last year and now the arm issue.
At 24, Draper has plenty of time on his side but the fear for British tennis fans is that his undoubted talents will always be let down by his body. One suspects that his naturally hulking frame makes him far more susceptible to injury than his peers in a sport for which a more lythe, flexible frame has become the norm.
Those seeking for explanation might question Draper’s decision to overhaul his fitness and physio team this year, after a 2024 season in which he stayed relatively injury-free.
But that may be to confuse coincidence with causation – new recruits Matt Little and Shane Annun are top operators and long-time Andy Murray allies. It is more likely that Draper has simply been the victim of his troublesome body – or just plain old bad luck.
