"There are definitely areas in my game I need to improve on": Jack Draper dismisses comparison with Rafael Nadal

Britain’s Jack Draper has stated that being compared with Spain’s legendary tennis player Rafael Nadal is ‘not right’. The 23-year-old is regarded as one of the most talented players currently playing in men’s tennis in the singles category.

On the other hand, Nadal is regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category, having won as many as 22 Grand Slam titles. He retired from the sport last year after representing Spain in the Davis Cup. In the recent past, Draper has been compared with the legendary Spaniard after his incredible runs at two different events. In 2024, he had an outstanding outing at the US Open, where he ended up losing in the semifinals stage to the reigning world number one, Italy’s Jannik Sinner, in straight sets with a score of 7-5, 7-6, 6-2.

This year, Draper had another impressive run, this time at the Indian Wells, where he lifted the ATP 1000 title after beating Denmark’s Holger Rune in the final in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 6-2. One more similarity between the two is that both are left-handed players.

Draper, who is set to start his Monte-Carlo Masters campaign on Tuesday, was quoted in a report by TNT in which he stated that being compared to a legend like Nadal is ‘not right’. He also admitted that being a left-handed player makes that comparison slightly relevant but believes that he still has a lot of areas to improve upon in the near future.

"Being compared to Rafa is not right, to be honest," said Draper. "He's obviously an icon of the game and a 14-time Roland-Garros [winner], it's nuts. I definitely think being a lefty and having that loopy forehand and stuff is pretty similar, but there are definitely areas in my game I need to improve on to get to his standard."