Fans Hopeful as Jack Draper Dominates Ben Shelton Ahead Of Washington Open

After a last-minute withdrawal from Wimbledon, Jack Draper is eager to get back into action. He will return to the court at the Mubadala DC Open and is scheduled to face Alex Michelsen in the first round on July 27. Ahead of this, the Brit was seen playing a practice match with Ben Shelton and left the fans in awe with his convincing performance.

Draper won a practice set 6-1 against Shelton. He was spotted hitting a phenomenal forehand winner on the American’s serve and was clearly the better player on the court. These are the type of performances that would give Draper the confidence that he needs before he begins his campaign in the American capital. He needs a morale boost as the 2026 season hasn’t been kind to him so far.

Notably, Draper has only played in five tournaments so far this year. The 24-year-old had begun his season in late February with the Dubai Championships after being out of action for almost six months due to a left arm injury. He would then play at the Indian Wells Masters and Miami Open before sustaining an injury while playing at the Barcelona Open.

He encountered an issue with his right knee and had to pull out midway through his match against Tomas Martin Etcheverry while trailing 3-6, 6-3, 4-1. This setback would force him to withdraw from the entire clay swing and would result in him remaining on the sidelines for over two months.

Draper eventually made his return during the grass swing at the Eastbourne Open. This was the first tournament that he played under the guidance of Andy Murray, who joined his coaching team in May. He made the semifinals of the ATP 250 event, racking up three impressive wins, and was expected to record even more victories at Wimbledon. But the arm injury struck once again and forced him to withdraw from the Grand Slam.

Regardless of his injury struggles, Draper has appeared to be in good touch ever since Murray joined his team. There is also a real belief among the Brit’s fans as he prepares to begin his hard-court season.

Fans left impressed with Jack Draper’s performance against Ben Shelton

A fan sarcastically remarked that Draper’s body is made out of “glass” but also expressed hope for good results at the upcoming DC Open. “Broken glass body, soul brother looking good.”

Another fan sarcastically claimed that Draper would pull out of all the upcoming events until the US Open following his participation in the American capital, as seen in previous cases also. “Can’t wait to see Draper make a deep run and then withdraw from all events until U.S. Open… and then inevitably withdraw from qualies,” they wrote.

But most of the other fans were only worried about Draper’s current performance. One of them felt that his display against Shelton was quite impressive. “This is very encouraging.”

Finally, a fan even claimed that Draper is simply a better player than Shelton. “Draper is better than Shelton and always has been.”

It remains to be seen how Draper performs at his upcoming campaign in the American capital, which is set to begin on Monday.

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