Jack Draper got emotional recalling the difficult time he went through as a rookie after accepting a wildcard at the Miami Open. The World No. 5 also compared breaking into the top 100 with breaking into the top five.
Over the past two years, Draper has consistently risen in the ranks and finally achieved a career high of World No. 5 in May 2025. The title that helped him immensely to achieve this was the Masters 1000 event at Indian Wells.
The Brit got the better of several seeded players, including second seed Carlos Alcaraz, to get his hands on his maiden Masters 1000 trophy. Recently, in an interview with Sky Sports, Jack Draper was asked if being in the top five gets a player more respect or more banter in the locker room. While answering, he took a walk down memory lane.
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"When I first came onto the tour, I remember being 340 in the world, and I got a wild card into the Miami Open, and I wrote my name down for practice, and no one wanted to hit with me. They were all just crossing out my name and putting someone else's name," Jack Draper said (from 2:55).
Further, he explained that players understand that they are floating in the same boat and eventually respect each other.
"But obviously, I think as you play more, as you win more matches, as you get to know the players and get to know that we're all the same, and we're all sacrificing our lives and trying to do the right thing in tennis and trying to go after our goals — that gains respect. And so I think, combined with results and just the person, I think that, ultimately leads to more respect," he added.
Draper also claimed that breaking into the top 100 was a more difficult task than breaking into the top five.
"It’s a very lonely road to get to that point": Jack Draper compares breaking into the top 100 with the top five
In the same interview with Sky Sports, Jack Draper was asked what was more difficult, breaking into the top 100 or the top five. The Brit answered the top 100 and explained that the Futures and Challengers level is very difficult. He had to go to some "not amazing" places to earn his rankings.
"People think it's all glitz and glamour, when actually, coming up through the ranks in the Futures, the Challengers — there’s thousands of players who are hungry to be in this position, inside the world’s Top 100. And you have to go to some not amazing places and compete in front of no people and stay in the same place for a long time," Jack Draper said.
Further, he pointed out that it is a very "lonely" road to the top.
"Mentally, that's very challenging. Of course, it has a lot of ups to it as well — the winning and that sort of stuff — but it’s a very lonely road to get to that point. So I’d definitely say breaking the Top 100 was something that, you know, I’ll look back on as — that’s one of the hardest things I’ve done yet," he added.
When Draper made his ATP Tour debut at the Miami Open in 2021, he was ranked just outside the top 300. It was a long road from there, but the Brit kept grinding and climbing the rankings. He finished 2022 inside the top 50 after some deep runs at several tournaments.
2023, however, saw him dip out of the top 100 again as he was sidelined due to injuries. His exceptional tennis was on display in 2024, as he rose from World No. 61 to No. 15 by bagging two titles. In 2025, he continued his rise and achieved a career-high World No. 5 ranking.
