Jack Draper has become only the fourth Briton to reach the US Open singles semi-finals in the Open era.
By dominating Zhang Zhizhen, Facundo Diaz Acosta, Botic van de Zandschulp, Tomas Machac and Alex de Minaur, he qualified for the last four, where world number one Jannik Sinner awaits him.
We look at the tennis journey that brought Draper to this point.
A promising start at Wimbledon
Draper was seen as an exciting prospect from a young age in British tennis circles, but the first time he made his mark on a wider audience was at the Wimbledon juniors in 2018.
The left-hander was just 16 but caught the eye of the All England Club as he progressed through the tours.
He faced Lorenzo Musetti, who reached the men’s semi-finals at SW19 this year, in the quarter-finals and knocked out the highly-rated Italian before winning a marathon semi-final battle against Nicolas Majia 7-6 (7-5) 6-7 (6-8) 19-17.
Perhaps still exhausted after such an epic match, Draper lost to Tseng Chun-hsin of Chinese Taipei in the final, but there was enough to suggest he would still have plenty to do.
Defeat the Wimbledon champion
It was a breakthrough year for Draper, who won his first ATP title at the Stuttgart Open in June.
That elevated the 22-year-old to British number one for the first time, but it was a few days later at Queen’s that he really made people stand up and take notice.
Draper faced Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz in the second round, the Spaniard defending a 13-match winning streak on grass.
“Coming to Queen’s for a home tournament, as British number one, you would think it would put more pressure on my shoulders – but it’s the opposite,” Draper said.
“I feel calm and relaxed because I know I’m doing the right things. I’m confident in my tennis and I know I’ll be hard to beat.”
That calm was evident as Draper beat Alcaraz, who would later defend his Wimbledon title, 7-6 (7-3) 6-3.
On track to reach the summit
For a long time Andy Murray was the undisputed king of British tennis, but for much of his career there was no clear heir.
Draper put himself in contention when he took a set from Novak Djokovic on his Wimbledon debut in 2021, but injuries and form issues over the next two years threatened to derail his progress.
However, he returned to full fitness in 2024 and at his final Wimbledon, Murray was full of praise for his Davis Cup teammate.
“Jack definitely has the ability to reach the top of the game,” Murray said.
“He’s a really exciting player to watch and I think he has a big future.”
Although he was knocked out in the second round at SW19, Draper’s performance in New York shows why he is so highly regarded by Murray.
And Draper’s comments about Murray after his fourth-round win over Machac in New York show the feeling is mutual.
“What I miss is being around his stinky shoes and all his stinky clothes,” Draper said.
“But Andy is a legend and if I had half his career then I would be a happy man.”
Draper’s success so far means he follows 2012 champion Murray, 1997 runner-up Greg Rusedski and 2004 semi-finalist Tim Henman among British men to reach the last four in singles during the Open era in New York.
In vogue – literally
Draper is not one to shy away from the spotlight off the field either.
Glamorous photoshoots with stylish fashion magazines showed her appeal to wider markets.
Tatler described him as having a “jaw sharper than a Stanley knife” when he was featured alongside fellow Brits Katie Boulter and Cameron Norrie last year, while he recently appeared alone in Vogue.
“I really like being in front of the camera, if I look good, of course,” Draper joked to Vogue.
Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour was even sitting with her support team during Machac’s fourth beating.
Tennis in the blood
There was little chance that Draper would have avoided tennis when he was younger, given his family’s involvement in the sport.
His father, Roger, was the chief executive of the Lawn Tennis Association between 2006 and 2013.
Meanwhile, his mother Nicky was one of Britain’s top players as a junior and is now a tennis coach.
His older brother Ben was also a talented tennis player and competed in college tennis in the United States while at the University of California, Berkeley.
In recent years, another family member, his dog Ozzy, has played an important role for Draper off the field.
He says the labradoodle helps him relax because he “doesn’t care if I’ve had a bad day or a good day, he’s always happy.”
Away from tennis, it must have been a mixed few days for Draper, who is a huge Oasis fan and managed to secure a ticket to see them next year.
But he also supports Manchester United – and things have changed. It didn’t go so well for them…
