Davis Cup dilemma: Jack Draper’s availability in question for Great Britain

Leon Smith, Captain of Great Britain’s Davis Cup team, will evaluate Jack Draper before deciding if he’s fit to play. The world No. 20 had one of the best performances of his career, advancing to the semifinals of the US Open, winning 15 consecutive sets before falling to the eventual champion Jannik Sinner in straight sets.

While Draper kept fighting with Sinner during the first two sets, in the third, he showed visible physical problems and vomited several times on the court while struggling to stay in the match. The win ultimately went to the Italian, 7-5, 7-6(3), 6-2.

Great Britain is in Group D alongside Argentina, Canada, and Finland. So far, the British singles players would be Jack Draper and Billy Harris, though Captain Leon Smith has yet to confirm Draper’s presence for the first match against Finland: "Until we get on the court and start doing some stuff, it's quite hard to tell how (he) feels," said Smith.

"It's just a question of figuring out where he is at with his energy, how much tennis he can play over the course of the week. But, if he's good to go, he's good to go. If he's not, I've got every faith in those sitting beside me now."

Draper’s presence as the team leader could be a good omen, especially considering that Great Britain has no other players in the top 100. The absence of Cameron Norrie and Andy Murray’s recent retirement leaves Great Britain in a more vulnerable position than in previous years, though Draper could be the one to lead the team in the coming years: "We are absolutely thrilled that he's coming."

"You can tell straight away that he gets Davis Cup. He plays with passion, pride, fight, and you mix that with the fact he's a top-20 player with unbelievable quality, he's going to be a very important member of the team not just this week but for many, many, many years to come."

"He absolutely loves it and his commitment by coming here just shows that," Smith added about Draper. "Obviously we miss Andy being around, just in general. He was a bedrock of the team for the last couple of decades, even putting his heart and soul into one of the rubbers here last year against Switzerland."

"You could still see how much it meant to him then. But he's not forgotten, is he? He's left a massive imprint and legacy on definitely me but also all the guys that are sitting here."

Great Britain will face Finland, represented by Otto Virtanen (No. 109) and Eero Vasa (No. 703), who will play against Draper (No. 20) and Harris (No. 101). In doubles, Harri Heliövaara and Patrik Niklas-Salminen will face the British team of Neal Skupski and Henry Paten: "I think it's a really even group, and something always happens. That's what Davis Cup is, players take their chances."

"But I really believe we can be successful here. We're really determined to do that. All the players here are in good confidence, playing well, so why not? We've got to get after this."

Later on, Great Britain will face Argentina on 13th September, led by Sebastián Báez (No. 26) and Francisco Cerúndolo (No. 31), and on 15th September, they will face Canada, whose main figures include Denis Shapovalov (No. 100) and Felix Auger-Aliassime (No. 21).