Tennis
Jack Draper Beats Arnaldi To Reach Madrid Open Semi-Finals And Move To Top Five In World Rankings
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Get to know James Chittick betterPublished02 May 2025
Jack Draper won his Madrid Open quarter-final against Italian Matteo Arnaldi to move into the top five in the world for the first time.
The British number one comfortably beat his opponent 6-0 6-4 to reach the semi-finals, winning the first set in just 25 minutes.
Arnaldi, ranked 44 in the world, won his opening two service games in the second set, but Draper broke the third to make it 3-2.
Having won the Indian Wells title in March, Jack Draper, 23, held his serve to win the match after one hour and 17 minutes.
The Englishman dropped only ten points on his serve, and never faced a break point.
He will now overtake Novak Djokovic in the world rankings, moving into the top five on Monday.
Jack Draper Targets Madrid Open Victory
Draper is now the highest-seeded player still in the Madrid Open.
His next opponent will be another Italian, with him facing Lorenzo Musetti in his first-ever clay-court ATP semi-final.
Musetti, the tenth seed, overcame Canadian Gabriel Diallo 6-4-6-3 in his quarter-final match.
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π¬π§ @jackdraper0 dominates Arnaldi (6-0, 6-4) to reach his maiden #MMOPEN semifinals without dropping a single set. Brilliant run! @atptour | @ATPTour_ES pic.twitter.com/s823hi6VL2
β #MMOPEN (@MutuaMadridOpen) May 1, 2025
Speaking after his victory, Draper told Sky Sports: βI feel stronger every time I play.
βAgainst these guys I used to feel like I would be the one on the back foot, the one defending, so the next part of my game was getting capable physically to do the things I know I can do and bully these guys.
βI have been doing everything in all areas pretty well and am excited to keep on going. Hopefully it keeps coming together.
βYou see guys like Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have no fear and so I just want to go after it, I suppose.
βMy forehand is doing a lot of damage and I want to keep it up.
βI know I can win any match and lose any match. I am fearful I could lose but that helps me compete the way I do.β
How Old Is Jack Draper?
Still only 23 years old, Jack Draper is becoming the biggest rising star in world tennis.
The London-born left hander made the 2018 Junior Wimbledon final, losing to Tseng Chun-hsin.
He has since quickly risen up the world rankings, and reached the semi-finals of last yearβs US Open for a career-best Grand Slam performance.
When Is Jack Draper Playing Next?
Jack Draperβs Madrid Open semi-final against Lorenzo Musetti will take place from 19:00 BST on Friday, 2 May.
To watch all the action, Sky Sports Tennis are the live UK broadcaster for the Madrid Open, with coverage also available via live stream on Sky Go or the Sky Sports app.