Jack Draper Makes Feelings Clear on Women Playing Before ATP Events at Queen’s Club This Year

Jack Draper is participating at the Queen's Club Championships where he is bidding to win his second grass-court title.

Jack Draper Makes Feelings Clear on Women Playing Before ATP Events at Queen’s Club This Year

Jack Draper (Image via X/The Tennis Letter)

The men’s main draw events at the Queen’s Club Championships commenced on June 16. A day before, Germany’s Tatjana Maria, 37, became the oldest player on the WTA Tour to win a singles title since Serena William‘s victory at the 2020 ASB Classic at the age of 38.

There’s another thing special about this tournament- for the first time since 1973, WTA events were held at the Queen’s Club. Since it’s a grass-court tournament, the court could deteriorate over time. But men have no complaints it seems. Jack Draper thinks the live surface used to get slippery and implied that the used grass could be advantageous for the men. He said at the press conference:

I think it’s been really nice that they’ve been able to play here, ’Cause honestly, it is one of the best tournaments on the men’s circuit. I think it’s been voted number one for many years, and I think in terms of the courts, I mean, when the men play on it that first week, it gets very slippery as well, so I’m sure the courts are going to be fine.

Draper is bidding to win his second grass-court title at Queen’s. Last year, he lifted his career’s first ATP title by beating Matteo Berrettini at the Stuttgart Open. Draper is also chasing his second title of the season following his victory at Indian Wells. The 23-year-old later made the Madrid Open final but lost the title to two-time French Open finalist Casper Ruud.

Carlos Alcaraz makes his feelings known about his rivalry with Jack Draper

Jack Draper, at the Queen’s Club Championships, could set up a clash in the championship match with World No.2 Carlos Alcaraz, who is bidding to win his fourth grass-court title. Alcaraz entered Queen’s Club Championships following successful campaigns on the clay swing.

Jack Draper, Carlos Alcaraz
Jack Draper, Carlos Alcaraz (Image via ATP/X)

He reached the finals of every tournament he played on the surface and lost just the Barcelona Open final (to Holger Rune). The titles he captured on the red dirt are: the Monte Carlo Masters, the Italian Open, and the French Open.

The clay-court Major he claimed by beating his arch-rival Jannik Sinner who is currently participating at the Halle Open. At the Queen’s, the 22-year-old is chasing his fifth title of the season. Ahead of his opening round match against Adam Walton at Queen’s, Alcaraz talked about his rivalry with Draper, who the five-time Grand Slam champion defeated four times in their six meetings. He told BBC Sports:

Jack has really high potential. I love him, I love watching him play. I’m really happy to have that rivalry with him. I think every match we’ve played against each other, we raise our level to the top and we push ourselves to the limit all the time. I think that’s beautiful for us, for the people, the fans.

This year, the two youngsters met twice with both winning a match each. En route to his Indian Wells triumph, the Briton denied Alcaraz a chance to defend his title by beating him in the semifinals. The Spaniard, before upsetting home favorite Sinner at the Italian Open final, went past Draper in the quarterfinals.

After the Queen’s Club Championships, both Draper and Alcaraz will gear up for Wimbledon, where Alcaraz will be aiming to win his third consecutive title. In the last two seasons, he beat 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in the finals.

Draper, on the other hand, has never progressed beyond the second round in the grass-court Major. He reached the second round in 2022 and 2024. Last year, his campaign was ended by compatriot Cameron Norrie.

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