How Jack Draper has conquered clay ahead of the French Open - and why the red dirt is no longer fazing British tennis, writes MATTHEW LAMBWELL
Twelve months ago Jack Draper sat with head bowed, picking over the bones of a wretched defeat by qualifier Jesper De Jong in the first round of the French Open. For the fourth time in the last 18 years, there had not been a single British winner in the first round of the singles.
What a difference a year makes. Now Draper arrives in Paris as the world No 5, and a breakthrough clay court season has Britain dreaming of a first male winner of this title since Fred Perry in 1935.
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Telegraph
32 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Ange Postecoglou was right man to lead Tottenham forward
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Telegraph
32 minutes ago
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British No 1 Katie Boulter: ‘The epitome of tennis for me is Wimbledon'
There are, Katie Boulter reckons, two main paths to success in tennis – especially in women's tennis. You can, in the first instance, be a teenage prodigy, the kind of freak who blazes on to the scene like a comet, taking on players double your age and beating them, all while studying for your A-levels. But this road is fraught with danger. 'In some ways you want to be that child who's going to be the next big thing, a superstar from a young age, but there are caveats to it. Things that people don't see that can be pretty brutal,' Boulter says. 'I've seen it throughout a lot of people's careers. Some people are made to handle it and some people aren't. It's interesting to watch. I don't personally wish for it.' And then there's the other path. The slow, winding route to glory, away from the brightest glare of public and media attention. This way may take longer, but the destination's the same, and when you arrive, you tend to be better able to deal with being there. This is the road Boulter's taking. At 28, having toiled as a professional for more than a decade, she is now Britain's number one-ranked women's tennis player and intends to stay there. 'I'm not expecting to be an overnight success. I'm expecting to work for it,' she says. 'I like working hard. I like getting credit for the achievements I've made, but I also enjoy being… not exactly an underdog, but the quiet one.' She smiles. 'I like being that person.' It's 8am on a Monday in south-west London, a decent forehand's distance from the All England Club. We're in tennis country, at a vast, beautiful house tucked down a long drive, where Boulter will be photographed today. 'I must have driven this road a thousand times and never knew it was here,' she says, gazing at the place as she alights from an Uber. Boulter, who's in Nike athleisure with her trademark high ponytail, woke up at her home nearby only 20 minutes ago. She apologises immediately if she doesn't make any sense before she's had several coffees, but proceeds to be more lucid and honest about her sport than many manage in a career. She's only just overcome jetlag after flying home from the Miami Open. After all these years, it never gets any easier, even now she's in business class. The Boyfriend Exaggerated Cuff Green Stripe shirt, £130, Devon Jumper Green and White Stripe, £140 (on shoulders) both With Nothing Underneath, Suede Skirt, £749, Cotton cable Knit Cricket Vest, £229, Both Polo Ralph Lauren, Leather mary janes, £200, 'I never used to [be in business] when I was younger, but then I got injured and had to say to myself, 'You need to take care of yourself if you're going to do these miles.' In tennis you pay your own expenses – your coach, everything. So it's quite challenging for a lot of players. You don't really break even unless you're top 100. There's people trying to change that, but it's pretty tough. You're always trying to save in places, but not to the detriment of your health.' Boulter's rise certainly wasn't without incident. Born and brought up in Leicestershire but with stints in Florida and London, she showed great childhood promise that was interrupted by debilitating chronic fatigue in her late teens, while other injuries – including a spinal stress fracture in 2019 – mean she's hit her physical prime only in recent years. Now fit, she's soared up the rankings, rising to a career-high world number 23 at the end of last year, after winning her first WTA titles, and in the process overtaking Emma Raducanu to be Britain's top woman for the past two years. 'Tennis is a fascinating sport,' she says. 'You've got 17-year-olds playing against 35-year-olds, you've got people having their best years as teenagers and others having their best years in their 30s. Anything can happen, and for me it was going to be a matter of time before I got my ducks in a row. It's been nice seeing that come to fruition.' This year is proving an 'enlightening' one. She ignored a foot injury for too long, which ended up halting 2024's momentum when it sidelined her earlier in the year, but she returned to help Great Britain into the finals of the Billie Jean King Cup when she and her doubles partner Jodie Burrage beat the Netherlands this April, before breaking new ground by earning the first WTA Tour clay-court win of her career, at the Madrid Open. That's all before the grass-court season starts, including playing at The Queen's Club as it hosts professional women's tennis for the first time in more than 50 years, and of course Wimbledon. Grass is Boulter's strongest surface, and she says, 'The epitome of tennis for me is Wimbledon and the grass season and playing at home in front of my friends and family.' And, occasionally, even more esteemed guests: in 2023 the Princess of Wales surprised her by turning up to watch her on day two of Wimbledon. Boulter comes from a tennis family. Her mother, Sue, whom she 'idolises', was her first tennis coach, while her maternal grandparents, Brian and Jill Gartshore, were county champions who met on court. Her older brother, James, was also a promising junior, but gave it up as a teenager and now slogs it out as an agent to Hollywood stars. Their father, David, a businessman who used to work for BP, and Sue were 'the total opposite' of typical tennis tiger parents, encouraging Boulter to keep an all-round education and to focus on tennis only when she decided to. When Boulter was starting secondary school, her father's work took the family to Florida, where she was briefly homeschooled and met various other young tennis starlets, including her now best friend, Laura Robson. Her parents' marriage ended, after which the 13-year-old Boulter and her mother moved to London while her father stayed in Florida. Boulter hasn't seen him since, she says; her grandfather is 'probably the biggest male influence I had growing up'. On court, Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams, Roger Federer and 'some people outside of tennis, like Jessica Ennis' were her idols. She played Williams and Federer in the same few days at a tournament once. 'It was quite the week…' she says, shaking her head. Chronic fatigue, which struck in her late teens, now 'feels like a long time ago, but I didn't feel like I could train or get the work done to be a tennis player'. She changed her lifestyle and diet, and the cure came ultimately from 'the support from my family, plus the medical team at the National Tennis Centre, which I know I'm very lucky to have [compared] to a lot of kids in the same situation,' she says. 'I think [the fatigue] showed me what I wanted, it led me to this path. I wouldn't change it, because I don't know if I'd be here right now without that.' The coffee has arrived. 'Praise the Lord,' Boulter says. As, in fact, has her agent, Dino Marcan, a tall, friendly Croatian. Boulter's support team has steadied in recent years, but it has also swollen by one, with the addition of her fiancé, Alex de Minaur, the Australian currently ranked number seven in the men's game. The pair have been an off-court couple since 2020 and engaged since December, and they frequently play doubles together – teasing each other in post-match interviews and on social media. They've been variously compared to 'the new Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf', and 'the real life Tashi and Art from Challengers '. (People who say the latter possibly haven't seen that film in full.) 'We're the most lax people out there, we're always just having fun,' Boulter says. 'We played in the mixed doubles at Wimbledon a few years ago, and I think it was the most fun I've had in my life. I just love every second on the tennis court with him. He just knows how to support me.' I'd wondered if she might be less than keen to be asked about de Minaur, but she beams whenever he comes up. 'My career's been very up and down, but I've been through a lot and I feel like I can help him. He can be quite narrow-minded and he focuses on tennis, tennis, tennis and can lose perspective sometimes with just being human and remembering to enjoy it. I try to have a positive impact on that, and he brings me so much great advice. He's been the stable part of my life, and it's so important to have that.' I cannot help but notice she's wearing a diamond ring the size of Uluru. She laughs: 'Alex and my mum did very well.' Boulter is a 'Rare Jewels ambassador' for Pragnell, and always wears beautiful pieces on court, but the ring doesn't go with her. 'I'm just a tad paranoid about losing it. My team are always keeping an eye on it for me.' No date or location is set for the big day – Boulter's family are in Leicestershire, de Minaur's is split between Australia and Spain. 'I've not been a massive dreamer about my wedding – as long as my family are there, I'll be happy. [But] I did sort of dream about a destination wedding, having a place you can go back to that's your place. So it's possible it'll be in the middle of nowhere.' Katie wears: Denim dress, £1,300, denim mules, £600, and cotton sun bed, £2,500, all Celine Having de Minaur around gives Boulter an insight into men's tennis, which may be just as fiercely competitive as the women's game, but the off-court experience is different. It has always struck me, I say, that women in tennis are held to a far higher standard, especially when it comes to receiving criticism for doing anything other than training and winning. 'Yeah, possibly,' Boulter says, weighing this up. 'You do see a lot of [criticism] on social media, even I get a lot of that. You kind of get ridiculed for spending one second off the tennis court, which wouldn't be healthy for anyone in any other job. People expect you to be practising and playing at all times. But half of tennis is recovery, rehab, switching off – all these things people do not see. 'People judge but they don't see the full story. That's where [players] take it pretty hard, when you've got people telling you how to live your life. They don't see that we're human, and don't see the less glamorous side of things, they don't see me late at night in the treatment room having done 10 hours of work that day, they see one snippet of my time on court that day.' Boulter spoke last year about how common threats and stalking are in the women's game; how she and de Minaur have been followed around west London in a car, and a man once messaged her at the Nottingham Open to say, 'I'm outside. I'm going to hurt you if you come outside.' He was caught: he really was there, waiting. Katie wears: Cotton dress, £1,710, and leather racquet pouch, £1,460, both Louis Vuitton. Gold and diamond ring, £3,740, Pragnell 'It's apparent in tennis, there's a lot that goes on,' Boulter says today. Marcan nods. 'Some of it you don't even see, it comes to my email and I don't even tell you.' What sort of thing? 'Threats. I've had people tell me they're going to kill me even after one of my clients has won a tournament. Some of them are gamblers, some of them are stalkers, it's a mix of people,' Marcan says. 'And some of them are just bored, hiding behind a keyboard. There's a few of those out there too,' Boulter adds. Has she ever been asked to throw a game? 'They ask you everything. Obviously you report it straight away to the authorities. Ultimately you get abused. And I get double now, because every time Alex loses, they blame me…' She and de Minaur do, at least, make sure to stop talking about tennis as much as they can. 'That side of things is important, you have to know when to draw the line and take a moment for yourself. But when we're home we could be doing anything, him dragging me to the golf course, going on a date night in town, hanging out with my girlfriends, seeing my family.' Where would they go on a date night? 'We've changed, it could be going to a restaurant we've seen on Instagram or TikTok, or we just go into the arcades, or to Putt Putt [a crazy golf and karaoke place], the dodgems. Something fun but competitive.' She knows she's switched off, she says, when she's not in tennis clothes. 'A lot of the time I'm in my Nikes, I love that and I've been with them pretty much my whole career, but getting out of my training kit is such a nice switch-off for me, knowing I'm in my casuals that day.' Fashion is Boulter's other great passion, and may well end up being the primary one in the long term. 'I love it. It's something I want to get into when I finish tennis. I want to run my own business, designing my own stuff. That'd be pretty cool,' she says. Katie wears: Piqué jacket, £2,300, poplin shirt, £1,150, matching skirt, £1,290, metal belt, £1,100, calfskin belt, £510, suede shoes, £710, and silk socks, £290, all Miu Miu 'I love finding vintage pieces. I've got one of the oldest Loro Piana dresses, very traditional, very pleated. I resonate a lot with tradition, in tennis as well, with Wimbledon being my favourite. I find little boutiques around the world thanks to tennis, and love the feeling of finding something unique.' For now, though, the athleisure years continue as tennis reigns. A lot of the players Boulter met and played with or against when she was a teenager have long since dropped out. They burnt too bright, played too hard, or simply fell through the cracks. But Boulter, whose motto is 'perseverance is everything', is still on her steady, winding ascent. She has won titles, earned buckets of prize money, secured sponsorship deals and become a fan favourite, but a deep run in a Grand Slam tournament still eludes her. Now, with Queen's and Wimbledon in the offing, she plans to kick on again. 'The stars align for some people, they don't for others. But look at someone like [US player] Madison Keys, who won her first Grand Slam this year. She's 30, and could easily have quit a couple of years ago. But she persevered.' Boulter smiles. 'It's something I think about a lot. That's why it's my motto.'
The Independent
35 minutes ago
- The Independent
The major change Daniel Dubois has made to ensure ‘the greatest victory in boxing history' against Oleksandr Usyk
Confidence in the Daniel Dubois' camp is unwavering ahead of his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk. Dubois is more confident than anyone, seemingly counting down the days until he can ink 'undisputed heavyweight champion of the world' on his CV. 'I'm raring to go – get ready for the greatest victory in boxing history,' the Brooks athlete says, relaxing into a leather sofa after a few rounds of performative padwork – all-out efforts are saved for when he is behind closed doors. Catch all the latest boxing action on DAZN But while boxing is the prototypical individual sport, it is now a team game. And Dubois' team for this fight has grown to new heights, ensuring no stone is left unturned in his preparations for the heavyweight clash. 'This is only done at the top level,' says trainer Don Charles, who sits at the helm. 'I've been in the coaching industry for 25 years, and I've trained other high-profile boxers. This is the first time the team has grown to where we're getting all of this support: nutritional advice, a doctor present at training. That's unheard of, having a doctor present at training sessions. He adds: 'It's because this is the pinnacle. It doesn't get any higher than this, contesting for the undisputed. Daniel is a part of history, and we are all involved in it.' Among his team are Dr Ravi Gill and physiotherapist Tom Kopelman, who have been brought in from Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur. 'Our main remit is illness and injury prevention, recovery optimisation, and giving Don Charles the best possible version of Daniel Dubois every day,' Gill says. As well as taking precautions to avoid a repeat of Dubois' illness-caused withdrawal from his Joseph Parker fight, Gill stays ringside to keep tabs on metrics such as heart rate variability, blood oxygen levels, heart rate and more via a chest-worn monitor. His summary: 'I've worked with elite athletes and World Cup winners, and Daniel has the best physique I've seen. He goes on: 'It's impressive how well he recovers. His heart rate goes up when sparring and training, then it comes down again really efficiently. He can go 18 rounds, no problem.' Recovery is another big focus, physio Kopelman adds. Alongside prehab work and strengthening exercises to build a buffer against injury, he employs several techniques to allow Dubois to bounce back from tough 20-round training days. 'Recovery can involve lots of different things,' Kopelman explains, 'and it's very individual, so it's [about] finding what works for the athlete to make sure they're ready. Everyone talks about improving the one per cents, but even if you can improve things by 0.1 per cent, it adds up. Sleeping is a huge part of that, he says. 'You can have the best ice bath in the world, but it means nothing if you don't sleep well. Then there's an individual aspect to being an athlete. You have to be happy.' Dubois does seem happy, and remarkably at ease. After leaving the ring, he is led through some stretches, then unflinchingly lowers his imposing frame into a tub of freezing cold water. A torrent of ice cube-laden liquid is displaced onto the floor in the process. As eyebrows raise over his lack of reaction, he laughs, submerges his head, then reemerges with a laugh: 'It gets easier over time,' he says. Rather than the act itself becoming easier, he might simply be getting better at it. Most would agree this is mirrored in his career, with Dubois growing in composure, guile and ability with each passing fight. This, twinned with his team's fastidious preparations for the Usyk fight, means we are likely to see the best version of Daniel Dubois to date on Saturday, 19 July. For boxing fans across the world, this is an exciting prospect. Watch the very best boxing with a DAZN subscription DAZN is the home of combat sports, broadcasting over 185 fights a year from the world's best promoters, including Matchroom, Queensberry, Golden Boy, Misfits, PFL, BKFC, GLORY and more. An Annual Saver subscription is a one-off cost of £119.99 / $224.99 (for 12 months access), that's just 64p / $1.21 per fight. There is also a Monthly Flex Pass option (cancel any time) at £24.99 / $29.99 per month. A subscription includes weekly magazine shows, comprehensive fight library, exclusive interviews, behind-the-scenes documentaries, and podcasts and vodcasts.
