Jack Draper has no doubt Emma Raducanu will get back to the top of the game.
The former US Open champion is preparing to make her comeback after eight months on the sidelines following operations on both wrists and one ankle.
Raducanu, now ranked down at 298, has been training ahead of her first tournament back in Auckland in a couple of weeks’ time but still does not have a coach or a settled team around her.
Draper knows Raducanu well having grown up with her in juniors as the standout British hopes, and he said: “Obviously, when she’s fit, she’s an incredible player.
“She’s been struggling with injuries for a long time. I think people forget that before the US Open she was still in school. She didn’t have a lot of training. Obviously, she had that huge run and achieved what people dream of achieving in their whole career.
“And then I think to expect so much of her after that is a bit of a mistake because she hasn’t maybe got a lot of that physical foundation and the experience of playing on the tour and all those things that all those other players have.
“But I think the talent that she’s got and the maturity as well to do what she did at the US Open is off the charts.
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“I think if she can get herself to being at a good fitness level where she’s built up that resilience over months and years and keeps working on her game, she’ll be right up there with the best in the world and she’ll be competing for grand slams again.
“She’s motivated to want to come back. I don’t know how she’s going to get on but I know that, at some point next year, the year after that, she’s going to be back to being in those finals and those big positions because she’s got everything it takes. It’s just a matter of when.”
Draper can certainly empathise with Raducanu’s fitness struggles having spent much of this year on the sidelines himself.
A lingering hip problem, an abdominal injury and illness limited him to five tournaments over the first four-and-a-half months of the season before he damaged a tendon in his shoulder at the French Open and was forced to miss Wimbledon.
But, since returning in mid-August, Draper has again showed what an exciting talent he is, making the fourth round at the US Open and then reaching his first ATP Tour final in Bulgaria last month.
His ranking, which had plummeted to 123 from a high of 38 in February, is now back up to 61, and the 21-year-old is optimistic his ‘Mr Injured’ tag is behind him.
“I’ve always worked really hard, I’ve always tried to do the right things for my body,” he said.
“And this year I was really excited to see what happened but it just seemed like I kept on getting injured. I think some of it could have been to do with the fact that at the end of last year I changed fitness trainer and the guy was well respected.
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“I loved him to bits and we put in a lot of great work, but I just don’t think it was maybe the right work for me. And so my body kind of broke down.
“I think now, especially after having all those injuries, what’s a positive in it is that I understand my body a whole lot better now. So I feel like, in terms of the body stuff, I’m in a great place.”
Draper is playing catch-up to the likes of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, who are similar in age and have already established themselves at the top of the sport.
“I want to be competing with those two,” he said. “That’s kind of my benchmark of where I want to get to. I see myself being right up there with them. It’s just my past has been a little bit different. I’ve had certain things that have held me back.
“Next year, I want to be top 20 in the world. I want to stay injury free. I want to make sure that I’m able to play five sets in the grand slams without breaking down physically.
“I feel like I’ve got great people around me, I’ve got the mindset where I want to achieve great things. It’s just fulfilling my potential, whatever that looks like.”
Watching from the sidelines gave Draper the chance to reflect on his career so far, and he added: “I’ve had a bit of a mindset shift in terms of my perspective on life.
“And I feel like that’s a big part of why I’ve come back so quickly is because I feel like I’m a much better player now than I was when I was 38 in the world.”
Draper will spend Christmas at home before travelling to Australia on December 29 ahead of his first tournament in Adelaide beginning on January 8.
Sinner guides Italy to back-to-back Davis Cup triumphs
Jannik Sinner capped his outstanding year by helping Italy retain the Davis Cup, beating Tallon Griekspoor to ensure Italy downed the Netherlands 2-0 in Sunday's final.
World number one Sinner overcame Griekspoor 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 after Matteo Berrettini had registered a 6-4 6-2 win over Botic van de Zandschulp in the opener.
Sinner saved the only two break points of the first set as Griekspoor put up a fight, but the Italian put on a show in the tie-break to inch ahead.
Griekspoor hit back after giving up an early break in the second set, but Sinner immediately responded with two further breaks, with the Dutchman double-faulting for the first then wildly miscuing with a backhand for the second.
Sinner was untroubled from then on, sealing a triumphant end to a spectacular season.
The Italian has only dropped one set throughout that streak, finishing a year that saw him win the Australian Open, US Open and ATP Finals with a 73-6 singles record.
Data Debrief: Sensational Sinner leads the way
This has been a truly remarkable year for Sinner, who has become the first man in the Open Era to win at least one set in every match throughout a season since Roger Federer in 2005.
His victory ensured Italy became the first team to retain the Davis Cup since the Czech Republic triumphed in 2012 and 2013.
Italy also captured the Billie Jean King Cup earlier this week, and they are just the third nation to claim both trophies in the same season in the last 30 years, after the Czech Republic in 2012 and Russia in 2021.
Sinner and Berrettini send defending champions Italy into Davis Cup final
Jannik Sinner's victory over Alex de Minaur clinched Italy's place in another Davis Cup final, with Matteo Berrettini also victorious as the defending champions beat Australia 2-0.
Italy won the Davis Cup for the first time since 1976 last year, and they will have an opportunity to defend their crown against the Netherlands on Sunday.
Former Wimbledon finalist Berrettini got the ball rolling with an entertaining 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 7-5 victory over Thanasi Kokkinakis, not surrendering a break after losing the opener in a tie-break.
That teed up Sinner to close out Italy's victory, with the world number one overcoming De Minaur 6-3 6-4, the same scoreline he beat the Australian by at the ATP Finals earlier this month.
Speaking after his victory in Malaga, Sinner said: "It means a lot. It was a tough encounter, playing Alex. We know each other quite well now, so I have to be very careful every time.
"It's a very tough challenge for me, so I was looking forward to this one. Obviously, it helped a lot that Matteo won the singles today. He played amazing tennis. It was very high quality.
"Hopefully, this can give us some confidence for [Sunday]. It's going to be a very difficult and tough day for us and also the Netherlands."
Data Debrief: Back-to-back for Italy
Italy's men are looking to follow in the footsteps of their female counterparts, who won the Billie Jean King Cup earlier this week.
They are just the third nation in history to make back-to-back finals at both the Davis Cup and the Federation/Billie Jean King Cup, after the United States (1963-64, 1978-79, 1981-82 and 1990-91) and Australia (1963-64 and 1964-65).
Djokovic appoints Murray as coach for Australian Open
Novak Djokovic has announced his long-term former rival Andy Murray as his coach for the Australian Open in 2025.
Murray, a three-time Grand Slam winner, announced his retirement earlier this year and played his final match at the Paris Olympics in August.
He will join Djokovic's team in the off-season and coach him through the opening grand slam of the year, which begins on January 12.
This will be Murray's first coaching role since retiring following a 19-year career.
"We played each other since we were boys. 25 years of being rivals, of pushing each other beyond our limits," Djokovic said in a video on social media.
"We had some of the most epic battles in our sport. They called us game changers, risk-takers, history makers.
"I thought our story may be over - turns out it has one final chapter.
"It's time for one of my toughest opponents to step into my corner. Welcome onboard coach, Andy Murray."
Djokovic failed to win a major title for the first time since 2017, though he did clinch a long-awaited Olympic gold medal in Paris.
The Serb is currently level with Margaret Court for the most major singles titles by any player. He has a good record in Australia though, winning 10 times in Melbourne, beating Murray in four of those finals.
Murray, who beat Djokovic to win the US Open title in 2012 and Wimbledon the following year, says he hopes they can achieve success together.
"I'm going to be joining Novak's team in the off-season, helping him to prepare for the Australian Open," Murray said.
"I'm really excited for it and looking forward to spending time on the same side of the net as Novak for a change, helping him to achieve his goals."
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