Eastbourne–
Jack Draper defeated Ryan Peniston 6-3 6-3 to book his place in the semifinals of the Eastbourne International on a hot afternoon on Court 1.
Draper was a frustrated figure on court at times but believes getting the right balance of passion is key. “I have never been someone who is incredibly calm and composed and like ice on a tennis court. That is the unique thing about tennis; everyone has a different mentality. Mine is a bit more fiery and therefore it is tough to be calm the whole time.
“I try and get a balance now between being a bit of both because, for instance, if I was just calm the whole time, I probably wouldn’t get the best out of myself. Because that’s not who I am. And so I try to get a balance between being emotionally invested but also being calm as well and that’s something that I am going to try and keep on improving.”
Draper’s style is not too dissimilar to Andy Murray’s, which he recognizes. “Andy’s got a similar personality, I guess. He’s someone who loves competing and wants to win the whole time, and sometimes that brings out a little bit of anger here and there.
“But for instance, say Andy; if he was someone who never gets pumped up, never gets emotional, then he wouldn’t have had the success in the career he’s had so it’s definitely a balancing act.”
Jack Draper Looking Ahead to Wimbledon
Despite reaching the semifinals, the Brit is cautious of playing a lot of matches before Wimbledon. “There is no doubt that, obviously, if you go deep this week it is going to have a bit of a knock‑on effect for Wimbledon, but at the same time my mindset is not to get to Wimbledon, it is to try and do as well as I can here.
“We’ll worry about being tired after the tournament. But in a positive way I get a lot of matches, I’ve obviously gained a lot of confidence this week which I can take into future tournaments and I am not thinking about that just yet, I’ve just got to see how I do the next couple of days.”
Draper takes on Maxine Cressy in the next round a match which the Brit expects to be a tough challenge. “I know what Maxime is going to come at me with. I’ve seen him play a bit with Dan (Evans) and Cam (Norrie) the last couple of days. He had been on the Challenger Tour. I have been seeing him a lot at the same tournaments.
“He is very unique. He’s got quite a traditional game and so it’s going to be fun to play him and definitely just got to be patient and hopefully I can do alright.”
Draper faces Cressy not before 2:00 BST tomorrow on Centre Court. It will be a tough match but he can avenge fellow Brits Dan Evans and Cameron Norrie, who have already lost to Cressy.
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