Back in action: Jack Draper makes triumphant return to US Open

Jack Draper made a great return to the court after nearly two months and secured a a hard-fought victory in the first round of the US Open against Federico Agustin Gomez, winning 6-4, 7-5, 6-7(7). The Brit is back to the courts, defeating the Argentine debutant, who was playing in his first US Open main draw after successfully qualifying.

There was great anticipation for the Brit's return, as his last appearance had been in the second round of Wimbledon, where he suffered a surprising defeat at the hands of Marin Cilic in early July. The world No. 5 suffered an injury to his left arm that forced him to withdraw from the Canadian Open and Cincinnati Open in the preceding weeks.

He explained his injury during a press conference: "I started feeling pain in the middle of the clay court season, feeling some sort of blockage in the arm when hitting forehands and serving. It worsened gradually, and it bothered me a lot during the grass season. I didn't know what I was facing, so after Wimbledon, I underwent several tests."

Draper continued: "What I had were hematomas in the humerus of the left arm. They told me that if I continued playing like that, I could face very, very serious problems. It hasn't been easy, but it was good for me to be on a break, resting, and I could do many things. I went a month without serving, and after two and a half weeks, I was hitting from the baseline. I've been increasing my workload gradually. I know it's a complicated injury that takes time to heal, but I won't hold back at all when I'm competing."

The 2025 Indian Wells champion is defending his 2024 semifinal run, where he was defeated in straight sets by the eventual champion, Jannik Sinner. We had already seen Draper back on the court a few days ago in mixed doubles with Jessica Pegula, reaching the semifinals, though he hadn't yet faced the challenge of a full singles match.

The Argentine, world No. 203, had come through the tournament's qualifying stage after a tense match against Frenchman Hugo Grenier, which included a heated on-court argument and saw Gomez even save a match point. The draw paired him with one of the favorites, and the Argentine once again showed his personality, this time on Louis Armstrong Stadium—the second-most important court at Flushing Meadows.

In the first set, neither player gave away many opportunities on their serve, and a single break in favor of Draper in the middle of the set ended up giving the 23-year-old star the definitive lead. Draper had a 71% first-serve percentage and won an incredible 92% of those points, making it nearly impossible for Gomez to keep pace from the return. Draper took the set 6-4 after 36 minutes.

The world No. 5 remained solid on his serve at the start of the second set and quickly got a break in the third game on his first chance of the set. Draper's first moments of hesitation came while serving up 3-1, where he faced three break points against him, though he managed to save them. Gomez was already giving his warnings and a few minutes later, he again wasted two break points in his favor.

Draper was serving at 5-4 with a chance to close out the set, but the Argentine reacted and got the break he had been threatening for the past few games. In any case, the Brit hit the gas and broke back in the next game, taking advantage of the moment's tension. This time, Draper didn't fail and held the break to avoid a tie-break, winning the set 7-5 against a resilient Gomez.

In the third set, things finally started to click for the South American, who secured an early break at the start of the set and took a 3-0 lead in just a few minutes. The world No. 203 surprisingly took the lead, but Draper maintained his composure and managed to get the break back in the seventh game, leveling the score once again at 4-4.

The set came down to a tie-break, in which the Brit took the lead first, even holding a match point at 6-5. However, Gomez showed personality to recover in the final stretch, winning four of the last five points played to take the set 7-6(9-7) after 59 minutes.

Although Draper had a chance to close out the victory in straight sets, he ended up making things more complicated against a fighting Gomez, who managed to keep the match competitive through the beginning of the fourth set. Both players held their respective service games without difficulty until 2-2, with neither showing any signs of faltering.

However, Draper's experience in long matches proved decisive in the final part of the match, as he capitalized on a drop in his opponent's first-serve percentage to secure a couple of consecutive breaks. The world No. 5 took four straight games and closed out the victory without major complications, winning 6-4, 7-5, 6-7(7), 6-2 to advance to the second round. His next opponent will be Belgian Zizou Bergs, who eliminated Chun Hsin Tseng in straight sets.