Young Britain stuns Tsitsipas, identifying a potential flaw in his game

Britain’s young tennis star Jack Draper has identified a weakness of Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas after beating him during the Cincinnati Open. The 22-year-old got the better of the world number 11 in the second round of the mega-event on Thursday with a score of 3-6, 6-4, 7-5.

It was Draper’s second win against the Greek tennis star in professional tennis in two meetings. Talking after the match, the Sutton-born star highlighted a weakness in Tsitsipas’ game. Draper highlighted that since Tsitsipas has a weaker one-handed backhand, it gives him an edge, especially being a left-handed player.

“In regards to Stefanos, I think my make up is good against him,” he said. “It’s no coincidence, he’s got a one-handed backhand that’s a bit weaker. His forehand is world class, but sometimes the backhand is a little bit of a weakness so maybe being a leftie helps that pattern.”

The result was another bad thing for Tsitsipas, who is going through a lean patch. Before coming into the competition, he was knocked out of the Canadian Open after losing in the opening round to Japan’s Kei Nishikori in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-4. After that defeat, he announced that he would split with his father as a coach and hire his replacement on a temporary basis.

On the other hand, Draper is going through a decent season. He won the Stuttgart Open after beating Italy’s Matteo Berrettini in the final with a score of 3-6, 7-6, 6-4. Before coming into the Cincinnati Open, he played the Canadian Open where he was knocked out after losing in the opening round to Australia’s Jordan Thompson in straight sets with a score of 7-5, 6-2. Heis now set to face the winner of the match between Norway’s Casper Ruud and Canada’s Felix Auger Aliassime in the round 16 on Saturday. It will be the ninth meeting between the two at the highest level. In the previous eight meetings, both players emerged victorious on four occasions each.