Jack Draper laments major reason for 'worrying state of men's tennis' ahead of British star's Wimbledon return

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Jack Draper has claimed men's tennis is in a "worrying" place as he prepares to face Taylor Fritz in the first round at Wimbledon on Tuesday. The Brit has struggled with injuries since his second-round exit to Marin Cilic at the Grand Slam last year.

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He has played just 14 matches in the year since, out of action for several months with an arm injury, before missing more tennis with a knee issue.

As a result, Draper has fallen down to 131 in the ATP rankings and will be the clear underdog against sixth seed Fritz.

While he has recovered in time for his home Grand Slam, several other big-name players will be absent, most notably two-time winner Carlos Alcaraz, who is out with a wrist injury.

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And Draper has highlighted the increasing frequency of injuries as a serious problem.

"I was really trying to develop my game and push my game more and more every week to reach those guys like Alcaraz and [Jannik] Sinner, who obviously play at an incredibly high level. I just broke down," he told ITV.

"I think it’s pretty worrying the state of men’s tennis, especially right now. The amount of injuries, especially young players.

"When I look at the draws for the weeks when I was out, everything is shoulder, arm, wrist. I think definitely the way athletes are getting better and hitting the ball harder and moving better... it’s my opinion they need to really take a close look at what we’re doing on tour.

"Definitely the state of the Masters 1000s, the 12-day events. I was privy to those conversations when I was a top-10 player. Now I’m not. I don’t care as much about what I say. I think the tournaments are going to suffer a lot if not much changes."

The busy schedule appears to have taken its toll on Draper, who was fourth seed at Wimbledon last year after a run to the US Open semi-finals the previous year.

Injuries have set the 24-year-old back, but he has outlined his plan to return to the top.

"It’s very difficult," he said. "When I was younger, I had quite a few setbacks. Then I came through that. I made some incredible progress.

"Looking back, coming here last year as four in the world, I was feeling incredible and looking forward to everything that was to come. I felt like I was gradually building up and up and up, confidence in my tennis, in my body, in my mind.

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"Then you have something that stops you in your tracks when you’re not expecting it. It’s really difficult to accept that.

"I think my tennis hasn’t gone anywhere because I’ve really been dedicated every day to try and do everything possible so that, when I am back on court, like now, I’m in a good place.

"I still believe, even now after all this time, I’m competing at an incredibly high level. I’m looking forward to working my way up again."

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