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Jack Draper did not play for more than seven months until returning to the World Tour earlier this year. But he looked like he hadn’t missed a beat Wednesday at Indian Wells.
The defending champion at the BNP Paribas Open, Draper stopped 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(5), in an unforgettable match to send him back to the quarterfinals in the California desert.
Djokovic, who'll be 39 in May, looked every bit like a vintage version of himself. He fired off ridiculous winners, played with poise and energy throughout the match and came back from being down a break in the third set.
But he simply fell short, by a single point, against a version of Draper that looked even better than he did here a year ago when he beat Joao Fonseca, Jenson Brooksby, Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton, Carlos Alcaraz and Holger Rune in consecutive matches.
“He’s still one of the greats," Draper said of Djokovic. "He’s an unbelievable competitor. To beat him on this court is incredibly special to me.”
Up a break in the third set, Draper nearly squandered the opportunity in front of 16,000 on Stadium Court. With Draper leading 5-4 and serving for the set, Djokovic promptly went up 30-0, then 40-0.
Draper saved a break point when Djokovic fired a ball into the net, but he couldn't save a second break point and Djokovic got back on serve with the score tied, 5-5. After the match, Draper said that had he lost the match it would've been, "the biggest choke of all-time."
“I don’t know what the Twitter trolls would’ve said about that one,” Draper said.
Djokovic held serve to take a 6-5 lead and add to the pressure Draper was surely feeling. For his part, Draper continued to fight, and some of his points, even in the late stages of the match, were jaw-droppingly athletic. He held serve to force a tiebreaker with a multiple dropshots that gave Djokovic some trouble.
In the third set tiebreaker, Djokovic scored the first point before Draper scored three consecutive. Djokovic then scored three consecutive before Draper scored three of the final four. In that final four points, Draper took two points on Djokovic's serve, then scored a point on two of his own serves to end the match.
The match included one of the best rallies, and best points of the year so far, which came in the first game of the third set, with the score tied, 30-30. The point, which came on a dropshot at the net following a 24-shot rally, will surely be played on a loop on all the highlight shows and on social media.
The entire stadium rose to its feet in awe, the roar heard all over the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
"You won't see a better point," retired player Jim Courier said on the radio broadcast while another broadcaster on the clip that has since gone viral is heard saying, "In your life have you seen anything like it?"
But Draper answered back to send the game to deuce, and Djokovic grimaced as he walked around the court in the immediate aftermath.
"I mean, it cost me a break after, you know," Djokovic said of the point that sent everyone into a tizzy. "It was great winning that point in that game, but I just ran completely out of the gas and just started to feel a bit better towards basically end of the third."
After Draper held serve to tie the set, Djokovic came back from down 30-0 to win the game. He saved two break points but couldn't save a third as Draper went up a break to take a 2-1 lead.
Djokovic quickly went up 30-0 in the next game, but Draper managed to hold serve to take a 3-1 lead and inch closer to victory.
Through it all, Djokovic took his time, took deep breaths and managed the game in a way that would allow him to carefully find his way back into the match.
He then held serve to cut Draper's lead to 3-2, before Draper held serve and took a 4-2 lead. Djokovic then held serve to cut it to 4-3, setting up a crucial service game for Draper.
Draper held serve, to go up 5-3, putting pressure on Djokovic to hold. But instead, it appeared that Draper was the one feeling the pressure. His shots tightened up and Djokovic easily scored all four points in the game to cut the deficit to 5-4.
But Draper rose to the occasion and the rest is now history.
"I got the crowd backing me and I felt the energy," Djokovic said. "It was, like, maybe I'm gonna take this one. It was so close, so close. I mean, just unfortunate few mistakes from my side."
Djokovic, the third seed, was vying to become the oldest to win an Indian Wells title. Roger Federer won a title here at 35, in 2017.
Draper will now face 11th-seeded Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinals.
“I'm just finding a way to keep going," Draper said. "I’m really proud of myself right now.”
Andrew John covers the BNP Paribas Open for The Desert Sun and USA TODAY. Email him at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Jack Draper outlasts Novak Djokovic in unforgettable Indian Wells win
Continue reading...
The defending champion at the BNP Paribas Open, Draper stopped 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(5), in an unforgettable match to send him back to the quarterfinals in the California desert.
Djokovic, who'll be 39 in May, looked every bit like a vintage version of himself. He fired off ridiculous winners, played with poise and energy throughout the match and came back from being down a break in the third set.
But he simply fell short, by a single point, against a version of Draper that looked even better than he did here a year ago when he beat Joao Fonseca, Jenson Brooksby, Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton, Carlos Alcaraz and Holger Rune in consecutive matches.
“He’s still one of the greats," Draper said of Djokovic. "He’s an unbelievable competitor. To beat him on this court is incredibly special to me.”
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Up a break in the third set, Draper nearly squandered the opportunity in front of 16,000 on Stadium Court. With Draper leading 5-4 and serving for the set, Djokovic promptly went up 30-0, then 40-0.
Draper saved a break point when Djokovic fired a ball into the net, but he couldn't save a second break point and Djokovic got back on serve with the score tied, 5-5. After the match, Draper said that had he lost the match it would've been, "the biggest choke of all-time."
“I don’t know what the Twitter trolls would’ve said about that one,” Draper said.
Djokovic held serve to take a 6-5 lead and add to the pressure Draper was surely feeling. For his part, Draper continued to fight, and some of his points, even in the late stages of the match, were jaw-droppingly athletic. He held serve to force a tiebreaker with a multiple dropshots that gave Djokovic some trouble.
You must be registered for see images attach
In the third set tiebreaker, Djokovic scored the first point before Draper scored three consecutive. Djokovic then scored three consecutive before Draper scored three of the final four. In that final four points, Draper took two points on Djokovic's serve, then scored a point on two of his own serves to end the match.
The match included one of the best rallies, and best points of the year so far, which came in the first game of the third set, with the score tied, 30-30. The point, which came on a dropshot at the net following a 24-shot rally, will surely be played on a loop on all the highlight shows and on social media.
The entire stadium rose to its feet in awe, the roar heard all over the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
"You won't see a better point," retired player Jim Courier said on the radio broadcast while another broadcaster on the clip that has since gone viral is heard saying, "In your life have you seen anything like it?"
But Draper answered back to send the game to deuce, and Djokovic grimaced as he walked around the court in the immediate aftermath.
"I mean, it cost me a break after, you know," Djokovic said of the point that sent everyone into a tizzy. "It was great winning that point in that game, but I just ran completely out of the gas and just started to feel a bit better towards basically end of the third."
After Draper held serve to tie the set, Djokovic came back from down 30-0 to win the game. He saved two break points but couldn't save a third as Draper went up a break to take a 2-1 lead.
Djokovic quickly went up 30-0 in the next game, but Draper managed to hold serve to take a 3-1 lead and inch closer to victory.
Through it all, Djokovic took his time, took deep breaths and managed the game in a way that would allow him to carefully find his way back into the match.
He then held serve to cut Draper's lead to 3-2, before Draper held serve and took a 4-2 lead. Djokovic then held serve to cut it to 4-3, setting up a crucial service game for Draper.
Draper held serve, to go up 5-3, putting pressure on Djokovic to hold. But instead, it appeared that Draper was the one feeling the pressure. His shots tightened up and Djokovic easily scored all four points in the game to cut the deficit to 5-4.
But Draper rose to the occasion and the rest is now history.
"I got the crowd backing me and I felt the energy," Djokovic said. "It was, like, maybe I'm gonna take this one. It was so close, so close. I mean, just unfortunate few mistakes from my side."
Djokovic, the third seed, was vying to become the oldest to win an Indian Wells title. Roger Federer won a title here at 35, in 2017.
Draper will now face 11th-seeded Daniil Medvedev in the quarterfinals.
“I'm just finding a way to keep going," Draper said. "I’m really proud of myself right now.”
Andrew John covers the BNP Paribas Open for The Desert Sun and USA TODAY. Email him at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Jack Draper outlasts Novak Djokovic in unforgettable Indian Wells win
Continue reading...
