"Was hard" - Jack Draper admits to being "frustrated" watching Carlos Alcaraz beat Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon from his couch amid injuries

Jack Draper, the last person to beat Carlos Alcaraz, recently opened up about his experience watching the Spaniard beat Novak Djokovic at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships. The Brit was forced to miss the tournament due to an injury.

Draper is currently enjoying a career-high ranking of World No. 29, thanks to his remarkable grasscourt campaign. The Brit won his maiden career title a few weeks ago at the Boss Open in Stuttgart, which consequently made him the youngest British No. 1 since Andy Murray. He followed the run with a final-eight appearance at the Queen’s Club Championships.

At the tournament, Jack Draper beat defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets, thus snapping the Spaniard’s 13-match winning streak on the surface. He was halted by eventual champion Tommy Paul in the quarterfinals.

While things have been looking up for Draper ahead of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships, he had a very different experience in 2023. The Brit was forced to skip the grass season after sustaining a shoulder injury at that year’s French Open. He touched upon his time on the sidelines at his recent press conference.

"It was really difficult. I didn’t just miss this one (Wimbledon), I missed Queen’s; the whole grass," Jack Draper noted in his pre-tournament press conference at SW19.

The Brit recalled his agony at being confined to the couch, watching his peers make progress. He also admitted that watching Carlos Alcaraz’s heroics against Novak Djokovic at the grasscourt Slam was “hard.”

"I think I was sat on my couch for most of it, just really frustrated watching all the matches," he recalled. "I remember I watched a couple of matches. I think I watched the Broady-Ruud match which was amazing to see."

"Obviously watched the full final, which was hard to watch, obviously," he added. "Someone so young winning the title and showing what he’s capable of."

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Jack Draper on Carlos Alcaraz's win against Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon: "That gave me huge motivation"

Jack Draper (L) shakes hands with Carlos Alcaraz after beating him at the 2024 Queen's Club Championships (Image Source: Getty)

Jack Draper was ranked inside the world’s top 50 before last year’s Wimbledon but eventually fell out of the top 100 due to his prolonged absence. When he resumed his campaign in August, he had to resort to the Challengers to work his way up.

"But it really, really motivated me," Draper said of his injury break in the aforementioned press conference. "It was actually I think a blessing in disguise because my body wasn’t ready. I don’t think mentally was ready either to be a top player."

Besides his maiden title in Stuttgart, the 22-year-old has won a Challenger title and made two other finals on the ATP Tour (in Sofia and Adelaide) since his comeback. He said that it was Carlos Alcaraz’s match against Novak Djokovic that motivated him to reach greater heights.

"Even though I was on the couch watching that final when I got injured, it was my number one goal to come back; to be really strong; to be robust. And I did that," he said.

"Since that moment (when) I watched Alcaraz win Wimbledon and I was on the couch, that sort of gave me huge motivation to want to come back to these big events and be seeded and be in a great position like I am," he added.

The 2024 Wimbledon Championships is Jack Draper’s first Grand Slam as a seeded player. He begins his journey on Tuesday, July 2, against Sweden’s Elias Ymer.