Mark Petchley has talked up Jack Draper’s chances of landing the spoils at the US Open.
Emma Raducanu’s former coach believes that the Brit has what it takes to beat the likes of Jannik Sinner, as long as he can navigate his way through the early rounds of the competition.
Petchley told OLBG: “I am not that worried about someone like Jack [Draper] who hasn’t played much going into the tournament. The fact that he’s had to look after his body is a good thing. I think he’ll feel so fresh.
“You’ve got that unknown quantity having not played any matches. We saw that it was a bit of a struggle down in Australia. You end up getting in a few dogfights early on and then suddenly you’re pulling out a four or five setter in 35 degrees.
“A lot depends on how cleanly Jack can get through the first week. If he can, by dropping only one or two sets at best, then I love his chances. Anyone that thinks he can’t win it now is wrong. Jannik and Carlos have somewhat separated themselves from the field, but I give Jack in those conditions more than a puncher’s chance to go on and beat them.
“You never know, if you get through to that end part of the second week you may not have to beat them both. It’s not an ideal situation that he’s going in without playing in any of the recent tournaments, but, at the same time, when you’re as good as Jack, you can build confidence, you can build belief. It’s not that he’s going to have a lack of belief, but you can build belief in your match tennis very quickly. Being fresh ultimately could actually be his USP.”