Jack Draper signals statement of intent with convincing practice match ahead of DC Open against struggling Shelton

Jack Draper's stop-start 2026 is flashing green once more as he looks to get some rhythm on the court in the DC Open. Entered as a wildcard, the signs seem promising after demolishing top 10 talent Ben Shelton 6-1 in a practice set. In contrast, it is another worrying setback for the American.

The DC Open will take place from July 27 - August 2 with some immense talent set to battle it out for glory. Following Felix Auger-Aliassime's withdrawal, reigning champion Alex de Minaur is now the number one seed with Shelton, having entered as a wildcard, the other side of the draw.

The remaining seeds include Taylor Fritz, Lorenzo Musetti, Learner Tien, Frances Tiafoe, Jakub Mensik and Arthur Fils. Among them, other noticeable names including Stefanos Tsitsipas, Tommy Paul, Ugo Humbert and Rafael Jodar take to court in search for the title.

Ranked outside of the top 100, Draper needed to rely on a wildcard to get into the event. He will be relying on a deep run to possibly secure him a wildcard for the upcoming US Open. For now, the former world number four will need to go through qualifying to get into the Grand Slam he famously reached the semi-final of back in 2024.

His recent demise started around this time last year when an arm injury proved to be detrimental. He would play one match, first round of the US Open, before not appearing again until February of next year, and even then very sporadically. His clay swing ended due to a knee injury with the reoccurring arm problem cropping up on grass, meaning he had to skip Wimbledon.

However, there have been promising signs along the way that show he is still a quality player. His title defence at Indian Wells did not go to plan, but he did defeat Novak Djokovic in the last-16. His most recent expedition on court came at the Eastbourne Open where he made a run to the semi-final, losing out to Humbert in straight sets.

With three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray by his side, Draper is hopeful of making a move up the order. First, he must find a way past the tricky youngster Tien. The 20-year-old will have the home support on his side and it could be a tall order for Draper to progress.

Despite this, a practice set against Shelton may say otherwise. After watching it courtside, Christian Court posted on X: “Draper just won a practice set 6-1 vs Shelton. Jack’s left arm and serve looked good; Coach Murray’s happy with his return too.”

To come out on top that convincingly against one of the world's best is a very positive sign. If he can get back up to speed with a huge serve and forehand behind him, then there is every chance he could storm through the field and cause a huge surprise.

On the other side of the court, it may be slightly concerning for the world number six who has a big couple of weeks coming up.

His form in 2026 has been patchy with some inefficient timing. Having managed to win three titles on three different surfaces, his form at Grand Slam and Masters 1000 level has been surprisingly off.

He began with a quarter-final in the Australian Open, but managed just one win on the Sunshine swing. He skipped the Monte-Carlo Masters before consecutive opening match exits in Madrid and Rome left many pondering what is going wrong. He had won the Munich Open just beforehand and seemed to be a possible title threat.

Shelton would crash out of Roland Garros in the second round before a disastrous Wimbledon campaign ended before it even started. Otto Virtanen seemed like a routine first round tie, but the two-time Grand Slam finalist was taken to a fifth set. He missed a match point in the tiebreak and would go on to lose the match, recording a first round one exit at a major tournament since 2023.

He has not featured on court since. His practice session against Draper could not have gone much worse on the face of it. Court also wrote: "Shelton's FH has been very off though. Something to look out for next week."

A worrying sign with the Canadian Open title defence just around the corner. 1000 points are on the line with a possible exit from the top 10 in the coming weeks becoming a daunting thought for the 23-year-old. He was supposed to take on fellow countryman Ethan Quinn, but a late withdrawal will mean either a qualifier or lucky loser will he Shelton's opening test in the first round of the DC Open as he targets a fourth ATP title in 2026.