It’s been a miserable year for Jack Draper. Having been sidelined with an injury problem towards the back end of 2025, the Brit was hoping to put those problems behind him and enjoy a clean bill of health in 2026.
Instead, since withdrawing from the second round of last year’s US Open, Draper has played just eight competitive matches across four ATP events. Most recently was the Barcelona Open, but another retirement saw his tournament end early, and with it, his 2026 clay season altogether.
It’s believed to have been touch and go, but the Brits’ camp didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks, not least with Wimbledon just around the corner. However, Draper’s disrupted 2026 has seen him plummet down the rankings, with the 24-year-old now as low as 50th in the world.
It’s quite the drop off for Draper, who as recently as last June, had shot all the way up to fourth in the world. But in the latest set of ratings, he’s dropped from the previous position of 28th, to just inside the top 50 by the skin of his teeth.
That will almost certainly get worse before it gets better, given he’s unlikely to return until the beginning of the grass swing at the earliest. It kicks off with the Stuttgart Open, which was the first ATP Tour title that Draper won, with the HSBC Championship, and Wimbledon to follow.
Announcing his withdrawal from the Italian and French Opens on social media, Draper explained: “My knee is on the mend and I’ve started back hitting balls but unfortunately I have been advised not to play Roland Garros. As gutting as it is to miss another slam, the advice is not to rush straight back into playing five set tennis on clay.
“Off the back of the arm injury I sustained last year, I’ve been restricted with my training and by giving myself the time to heal and build, I can be the player I want to be out there once again. See you soon!”