Jack Draper issues a warning to Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz; Brit prepares to "really shake up those guys" after Vienna glory

Jack Draper has issued a warning to Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, and other top players following his impressive Vienna campaign. The Brit said he is ready to challenge the best in the business next season.

Draper won his biggest title yet at the 2024 Erste Bank Open in Vienna on Sunday, October 27. He beat the likes of Kei Nishikori, Luciano Darderi, Tomas Machac, and Lorenzo Musetti before prevailing against Karen Khachanov 6-4, 7-5 in the title clash.

This was Jack Draper’s second career title, following his maiden victory at this year’s ATP 250 in Stuttgart. The 22-year-old has also featured in two other finals so far – the Sofia Open in November 2023 and the Adelaide International in January 2024.

"I'm really happy with the way I've progressed this year," he said after his ATP 500 win in Vienna.

"I'll focus on next week (Paris Masters) and then I'm going to look forward to having a bit of time off and probably not thinking about tennis. It has been a long year and it has taken a lot out of me," Draper said about his upcoming off season.

Jack Draper, whose previous season was derailed due to injuries, also produced his best Grand Slam result yet this year, reaching the semifinals of the US Open. Here, he was knocked out by eventual champion Jannik Sinner in straight sets. While he wasn’t able to challenge the World No. 1, Draper earned a spectacular straight-sets victory over Carlos Alcaraz at the Queen’s Club Championships in June. Incidentally, he also beat Sinner at the grasscourt event in 2021.

Addressing his rivalry with the top two players in the world, Draper said:

"And then I'll refresh and I'll go again for next year with even bigger motivation to really shake up those guys at the top of the game - the likes of (Jannik Sinner) and (Carlos Alcaraz)."

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Jack Draper on challenging the likes of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz: "There's a lot of work to do"

Jack Draper (L) pictured with Jannik Sinner (R) at the 2024 US Open - Image Source: Getty

Jack Draper has often expressed his desire to challenge the best players in the world. The Brit previously said he was “frustrated” watching Carlos Alcaraz win the 2023 Wimbledon Championships while he was “sat on his couch” tending to his shoulder injury.

Following his win in Vienna, Draper emphasized that he wished to improve physically to stand a chance against Jannik Sinner, Alcaraz, and others.

"If I can keep on improving physically and keep on getting more and more experience at this higher level against top players then I'm going to give myself a shot to hopefully be competing with those guys," he said in the aforementioned press conference.

"But there's a lot of work to do," he added.

Thanks to his Vienna heroics, Jack Draper climbed to a new career-high ranking of World No. 15 on Monday, October 28.