Jack Draper has progressed to the semi-finals of a Grand Slam for the first time with his impressively dominant run at the 2024 US Open.
The 22-year-old delivered a strong display to down world No 10 Alex de Minaur 6-3, 7-5, 6-2 in the quarter-finals in Arthur Ashe Stadium at Flushing Meadows.
“It’s amazing. Honestly to be out here for my first match on the biggest court in the world. It’s a dream come true for me,” the Brit said in his on-court interview after beating de Minaur.
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“I think I played a solid match. I feel the best fitness-wise I’ve been in a long time. That’s where Alex has gotten me in the past.
“I also think he was struggling a bit with something, which may have helped me a bit. But credit to Alex. He’s an amazing player and fighter. We’re gonna have many more battles to come.”
Draper has dropped only 36 games in his five victories en route to the last four and he is yet to be pushed to a tiebreak, having lost more than four games in a set only once.
In the last 40 years, only tennis legends Novak Djokovic and Ivan Lendl have lost fewer games than Draper in a run to the US Open semi-finals.
Djokovic dropped 27 games en route to the last four in 2016, 32 in 2012, and 33 in 2013, while Lendl lost 34 on his way to the 1986 semi-finals.
Draper is the fourth British man to reach the semi-finals of the US Open in the Open Era following Greg Rusedski, Tim Henman and Andy Murray.
Rusedski is the only other British man to make the last four at the New York major without losing a set, having achieved this during his run to the final in 1997.
Murray became the only British player to win the US Open men’s singles event in the Open Era when he secured his maiden Grand Slam crown at Flushing Meadows in 2012.
Henman, who made the US Open semi-finals in 2004, hailed Draper’s performance against de Minaur.
“I think he can be so proud of so many different aspects. He played great tennis,” the former world No 4 said on Sky Sports.
“He obviously had his challenges physically. It’ll be interesting to hear how that leg is feeling.
“Also mentally – there were a lot of opportunities to get distracted out there. He came out, stamped his authority on the first set and looked comfortable and then in the second set he had a lot of opportunities.
Having started the event as the world No 25, Draper has climbed to 20th in the Live ATP Rankings, which will be a new career-high position. He will climb to 14th if he is a runner-up and can jump to as high as 12th place if he wins the title.
Draper will face world No 1 and Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals in New York on Friday.