Jack Draper of the United Kingdom achieved a major career milestone and secured his maiden semi-final berth in Grand Slams in his career. On Wednesday, September 4, Draper beat 10th seed Alex de Minaur 6-3, 7-5, 6-2 at the Arthur Ashe Stadium. It took the 22-year-old two hours and seven minutes to get the better of De Minaur, who was also looking for his first semi-final appearance in a major.
Draper, in the meantime, became the first British man to reach the semis at Flushing Meadows since Andy Murray achieved the feat way back in 2012. Before the ongoing major, Draper had never gone past the fourth round of a Grand Slam. The youngster has not only upped his game, but has now won 15 sets in a row until now in the US Open 2024.
In his first major quarter-final appearance, Draper converted six break points to come up trumps. De Minaur, competing for the first time since Wimbledon due to a hip injury, seemed to aggravate his hip during the point where Draper secured the first set. At the same time, Draper began experiencing his own discomfort and had his right upper leg wrapped in the second set. Despite this, Draper continued his impressive performance and secured the win.
Draper has become only the fourth Briton to reach the men’s singles semi-final at the US Open in the Open Era, joining Greg Rusedski (1997), Tim Henman (2004), and Andy Murray (2008, 2011-12).
No matter the outcome of his semi-final, Draper’s run at Flushing Meadows has guaranteed him a career-high ranking in the PIF ATP Rankings after the US Open. Currently, at No. 20 in the ATP rankings, Draper could climb as high as No. 14 if he advances to the final.
In the semi-final, Draper will be up against the winner of the other quarter-final between Daniil Medvedev and Jannik Sinner.