Daily Dose of Social Media: Sinner-Draper, Fritz-Paul and more - ATP recognizes off-court friendships

In a new Daily Dose of Social Media, we review some of the moments that marked the day, including an interesting post from the ATP highlighting great friendships on Tour, including Jannik Sinner with Jack Draper, Tommy Paul with Taylor Fritz, and Daniil Medvedev with Andrey Rublev, among others.

On the other hand, Maria Sakkari was the new protagonist of a WTA promotional video for the Motherhood initiative to support female stars who pause their careers to become mothers. Additionally, Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi shared a throwback photo, while Jack Draper showed off his new look for Roland Garros.

Jack Draper has shared a series of photos upon his arrival in Paris, riding the wave of an impressive clay-court swing that saw him reach the final of the Madrid Open and the quarterfinals of the recent Rome Open, falling only to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz. The British No. 1 arrives at Roland Garros with a new status, demonstrating his ability to establish himself among the best on clay courts and as one of the names that could threaten the favoritism of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

The world No. 5 recently debuted a new look, featuring a new haircut done by none other than Carlos Alcaraz's hairdresser. Perhaps Draper's new haircut could be a good luck charm for this French Open, where he will be the 5th seed and arrives with great ambitions, aiming for a deep run – and why not – reaching his first Grand Slam final.

Maria Sakkari was featured in a new WTA video, showcasing the new PIF WTA Mother Foundation program. This initiative aims to support female tennis players who wish to become mothers, ensuring that family planning doesn't pose an excessive burden or complicate their careers. The program seeks to provide financial support and protect rankings points for players who are pregnant or choose to undergo egg-freezing procedures.

"My mom stopped playing tennis when she was 25 years old. She was 27 when she had my brother and myself, when she was 29, and then my sister when she was 33. Obviously back then things were very different. Now having the option, you know, to just take a little break, either have a baby or do the egg freezing procedure. Being a tennis player, traveling so many weeks a year, having the option and having the ability to have the funds and also the time off."

Several players have become mothers and later returned to the tour, though previously without the same facilities. Notable names among them include some of the sport's biggest stars like Naomi Osaka, Victoria Azarenka, Caroline Wozniacki, Angelique Kerber, Petra Kvitova, and Belinda Bencic.

Andre Agassi shared a tender throwback photo with his wife Steffi Graf, showing them in their younger days after their marriage. The couple has been married for 24 years, having dated for a couple of years prior. While there have been several iconic tennis couples throughout history, none can undoubtedly boast as much on-court success as Agassi and Graf.

The American won 8 Grand Slam titles, though that's far outshone by his German wife's incredible 22 Grand Slam titles. Both also achieved the world No. 1 ranking for extended periods and are Olympic gold medalists. In fact, Graf holds the record for the most total weeks as No. 1, with an astonishing 377 weeks—meaning she spent almost seven full years as the leader of women's tennis throughout her career.

A recent ATP post shined a spotlight on some of the remarkable friendships between players on Tour, demonstrating how, despite intense competition, many have forged strong bonds with their colleagues—and rivals—off the court.

Among those featured are Hubert Hurkacz with Grigor Dimitrov, and world No. 1 Jannik Sinner alongside No. 5 Jack Draper. In fact, the Italian recently acknowledged that Draper was one of the few players who expressed concern and offered support during Sinner's three-month doping ban. Draper has consistently defended Sinner against accusations he received, and both players have frequently expressed mutual admiration in interviews.

Another iconic example of off-court friendships is that of former world No. 1 Daniil Medvedev and his compatriot, former No. 5 Andrey Rublev. Their relationship extends far beyond the court, with Rublev even serving as the godfather to Medvedev's first child. These two Russians have been constant rivals over the years but have never missed an opportunity to speak about their mutual respect and deep friendship outside of competition.