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Telegraph
4 days ago
- Health
- Telegraph
The touching family story powering Jack Draper through French Open
The first factoid people usually quote about Jack Draper is that his father Roger used to be the chief executive of the Lawn Tennis Association. But Roger was absent from the player box on Tuesday for Draper's maiden victory at the French Open. Instead, the seats were occupied by Jack's brother Ben, his mother Nicky and his grandfather Chris Entract. There is another family narrative here, running alongside the LTA one, and it relates to the awful illness that has robbed Chris's wife Brenda of her memory. The trauma of her condition has led Jack to become an ambassador for the Alzheimer's Society. In December, he organised a 'memory walk' along the banks of the Thames in her honour. It was Brenda who shaped the whole family's love affair with tennis. As a coach in the Dorset town of Dorchester, she helped train up her children – Nicky and Jonathan – to become outstanding juniors. Then she moved on to the next generation. As Jack has explained: 'My nan and grandpa used to take me to lots of tournaments. They were a huge part of my development, always supportive.' But then, despite her healthy and athletic lifestyle, Brenda began to become forgetful. The decline grew steeper until she couldn't recognise her own grandchildren. 'It started around 11 years ago,' Draper has said. 'It was hard to understand that as a 13-year-old. I didn't really get the severity of it. 'There's many stages to Alzheimer's. At first, you're not thinking properly, and you lose your memory. Then the worst stage is when you're physically capable, but you're angry. 'There's many different stages that I've watched her go through, like not wanting to get in the shower. And then it's like, 'How do you get this strong woman into the shower every day?' It's impossible. And so carers like my grandad, he's an absolute hero to keep on doing what he's doing, just putting one foot in front of the other.' 'I want to honour all the carers' Draper takes his role with the Alzheimer's Society very seriously. Indeed, he credits it with boosting his motivation on the court. As he said on the memory walk: 'It's such an important cause because it's about honouring my grandad, honouring all the carers, the people who are stuck in this situation. 'As a tennis player, it's an individual sport, and we always focus on ourselves. So it's important for me, especially as my career progresses, to have a purpose outside of my tennis as well. 'I just feel like I'm doing something apart from hitting a decent tennis ball. I have other things I'm trying to support and other things I'm trying to raise awareness for.' Sadly, Brenda is now effectively a blank slate. Alzheimer's has robbed her of any agency, so that – in Jack's words – 'she's not in any pain, she's pretty content, but she just sits there needing to be fed, doesn't know anything'. For Chris to come to Paris this week, the family have had to find other carers to take over the job. 'He is having a little bit of a holiday,' Jack said this week. 'Hopefully, he will stay out. It gives him so much excitement. It is nice for me to have him here, inspiring for sure. 'He's always on the live ranking, watching my tennis. He's obsessed with it. He knows everything that is going on around the world, on the tours, and he knows what all the Brits are up to. He just loves tennis. So to have him here is a massive, massive thing for me.' On Tuesday, Chris and the rest of the Draper clan were able to enjoy Jack's first-round match, which delivered an increasingly impressive four-set win over his junior contemporary Mattia Bellucci. That was on the lovely Court Suzanne-Lenglen, the second-string arena at Roland Garros. Next up for Draper – who is now guaranteed to climb to No 4 in the world when the next set of rankings are published in 10 days' time – will be a debut on the main stage: Court Philippe-Chatrier. He has been scheduled to play Thursday's night-session match against home favourite Gael Monfils: a contest which could easily turn into one of the rowdiest and most partisan occasions of the week. As for Roger Draper, he might be popping in later in the tournament, but for now, he is busy playing a veterans' clay-court event in Bournemouth. Although he and Nicky are no longer married, tennis remains essential to the lives of both Drapers and Entracts.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Jack Draper reveals special reason why he is extra motivated to go deep at the French Open as world No 5 leads the British charge in Paris
Tennis can be among the loneliest of sporting endeavours but, for Jack Draper, this year's French Open is a family affair. Watching the No 5 seed's first-round victory over Mattia Bellucci were brother Ben, mum Nicky and grandfather Chris. Chris, who turns 81 next week, was courtside when Draper beat Carlos Alcaraz at Queen's Club last year. He does not travel much, though, because he is the full-time carer for his wife Brenda, who has dementia. 'My grandparents are a huge part of my world,' said Draper. 'My grandad loves tennis, he's obsessed with it. He knows everything that is going on around the world. It gives him so much life. His wife, my nana, who has dementia, that was a big part of her world. 'She is being looked after in the UK at the moment. Usually my grandad does all that. He is having a little bit of a holiday. 'It gives him so much excitement. To have him here is a massive, massive thing for me; it's inspiring for sure. I'm very lucky to have my grandparents. To share these moments with them it's a big deal.' Tennis runs deep in the Draper bloodline. Chris and Brenda instilled a love for the game into Nicky, who in turn gave Jack his first instruction. He and Ben, a fine player in his own right, played together as kids at Sutton Tennis Club and big bro is now his agent. Nicky rarely watches her younger son live — she does not like to leave the family dog — and historically has not had the best record as a spectator. This fortnight in Paris is a chance to get that moving in the right direction. 'She came to watch me at the US Open (for the semi-final defeat),' said Draper. 'She came to watch me in Monte Carlo — I won one match there and then lost the next one. I wasn't playing well at all. She came to the Madrid Open semi-final where I beat Lorenzo Musetti. Then I lost in the final. So I am picking up more wins. There's no jinx anymore!' Draper is at the head of a British charge here in Paris, as one of five in action on Thursday. He will play a tantalizing night session match against French hero Gael Monfils, who recovered from two sets down against Hugo Dellien on Tuesday. That was a night session, too, and Monfils, still an extraordinary athlete at 38, seems to be possessed by a special kind of magic under the Chatrier lights. Jacob Fearnley, Cam Norrie, Sonay Kartal and Katie Boulter are all in action, too. Along with Emma Raducanu, who lost to Iga Swiatek on Wednesday, it is the first time Britain have had six first-round winners here since 1973. That statistic is as much a symbol of historic underachievement than present success, and Draper was keen to stress that winning a single match should not be the height of his colleagues' ambitions. 'It's exciting,' he said of the Brit charge. 'Not just because people are winning first rounds but there is potential for different journeys here. Jacob is an amazing player. I have said that before. He's going to go deep in Grand Slams, he is going to be a top player. The 23-year-old, ranked No 5 in the world, is set to be one of the faces of the British summer 'These are all players who are hopefully not going to just win one round. We are looking to go deep in the tournament. I was really impressed with Cam today. I thought beating Daniil Medvedev in five showed so much character. Emma, Sonay, all these players are amazing. They can all have deep runs in these tournaments, which is really exciting for British tennis.' Nice words, and there is certainly plenty of talent in that group — but Draper is the only one capable of lasting towards the end of the second week. He will hope to extend grandpa Chris's stay in Paris for a while longer yet.
