Cilic plays dream-wrecker to British hopes by toppling fourth seed Draper

New Straits Times

7 hours ago

LONDON: There were high hopes that Jack Draper would rescue what had been a lousy day for the home nation at Wimbledon when he emerged for his second-round showdown against a rival who was ranked outside the world's Top 1000 just 10 months ago.
Add in the fact that his 36-year-old opponent had been hobbled by injuries in recent years, had won back-to-back matches on the main tour only once in the last nine months and had never beaten a Top-5 player on grass in his entire career – and a younger and fitter Draper seemed a shoo-in for victory.
Unfortunately for the 23-year-old Briton the opponent he ran into was called Marin Cilic, a man with a proven Grand Slam pedigree who had won the U.S. Open in 2014 and finished runner-up at the All England Club in 2017.
Despite now plying his trade mostly on the second-tier Challenger circuit after his ranking went into freefall following knee surgery in 2023, the Croatian felt right at home in front of a packed Court One and produced an inspired performance to topple fourth seed Draper 6-4 6-3 1-6 6-4.
"We are all stunned. We have to absorb that. Jack Draper didn't do an awful lot wrong but when Marin Cilic is hot he can take the racket out of your hand. He is a Grand Slam winner and he bludgeoned Draper," observed 1987 Wimbledon champion Pat Cash while commentating.
Having last played at Wimbledon in 2021, Thursday's remarkable win over Draper proved to Cilic that he still had plenty to give to the sport despite going through the lowest of the lows over the past 24 months.
"My emotions are just incredible. Where I was two years ago, I can't even describe. It has been a long journey but I never lost any doubt," an emotional Cilic told the Court One crowd.
"It was a long and testing period, plus a huge challenge for me in this part of my career to come back and play at this level.
"To play in front of this crowd and against Jack is incredible, so thanks everyone for your great sportsmanship. I'm just feeling great and hoping I can continue to play well."
When the All England Club threw open its gates at the start of day four, fans dashed into the leafy grounds eager to cheer on the four British men in singles action.
With Cameron Norrie already into the third round, there was much excitement that there could be five British men in the Wimbledon third round for the first time since 1962 provided that Dan Evans, Arthur Fery, Jack Pinnington Jones and Draper all won their matches on Thursday.
Once that fantasy was crushed as Evans, Fery and Pinnington Jones fell by the wayside in quick succession, fans pinned their hopes on Draper, confident that the world number four would give them something to celebrate.
The hollering crowd certainly played their part in digging Draper out of a dark 0-40 hole in the eighth game, with the Briton launching into some thunderbolt serves to rescue the game.
However, all the deafening roars and cheers of the partisan Court One crowd could not save Draper from losing five games on the trot from 4-4 in the first set.
That sequence handed Cilic the first set, with the Croatian producing a scorching service return on set point before he surged into a 3-0 lead in the second.
It was enough to give world number 83 Cilic a two-set cushion.
He appeared to ease off the throttle in the third to raise hopes of a Draper comeback, but the British left-hander knew he was in trouble when he had to save two break points at 4-3 down in the fourth set and two games later it was all over.
Draper dragged a backhand crosscourt wide following a 19-shot rally to hand Cilic a memorable victory.
"Obviously, really upset. Probably one of the toughest losses I feel. Thought Cilic played an incredible match from start to finish. Didn't let up. Yeah, he deserved the win. But it hurts a lot," summed up a dejected Draper.