Furious Jack Draper falls just short after fightback in Madrid Open final
Jack Draper missed out on a second Masters 1,000 title of the season, losing 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 against Casper Ruud in the Madrid Open final. Nevertheless, the new world No5 can leave Spain in fine spirits after continuing a golden year on the surface where Britons suffer most.
Having fashioned his rise into the top ten on his favoured hard courts, the 23-year-old's present ranking is because of his victories on the clay courts of Europe. Short of a grand-slam, a 1,000-level triumph on clay is perhaps the longest-odds achievement for a player from these isles, and he fell just short.
Draper was No40 in the world when he won his first ATP title on grass in Stuttgart last June, and then raced through to
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Daily Record
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