Jack Draper defeated Botic Van De Zandschulp in straight sets 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 to move into the fourth round of the US Open. The British number 1 remains unbeaten in sets in the tournament after dominant wins over Zhizhen Zhang and Facundo Diaz Acosta and is emerging as a serious contender.
Draper faced the Dutchman, who made a career-best mistake in the second round when he defeated world No. 3 and four-time Grand Slam winner Carlos Alcaraz. The Brit is through to the last 16 for the second year in a row and is a player to watch.
Draper’s strong performance catapulted him into the fourth round
Draper (No. 25) started strongly, securing an early break to take a 3-0 lead. The 22-year-old had some problems with his first serve (just 41%), but his effectiveness with the ball in play was enough to avoid major problems.
Van De Zandschulp (No. 74) was unable to recover from the early break. He fought back against Draper with 13 winners and 12 unforced errors despite the Briton being the favourite, but he lacked the personality he had shown in the regulation round against Alcaraz, allowing Draper to win the set 6-3.
In the second set, both players raised their level and played mostly short points thanks to their effective serves. Both had a serve rate of over 70% and won over 70% of those points, resulting in few break points in the entire set. Draper only needed one chance in the 7th game to break and take the lead, and extended his lead with a 6-4 win on his fourth set point.
The Dutchman played his best tennis in the second set, but Draper's conviction limited his chances. In the third set, the world number 25 fended off three break points early on, which was the only time he was in trouble. At 2-2, Draper had a run of four consecutive games, mostly due to errors from his opponent.
Towards the end of the match, Van De Zandschulp seemed to be retiring quickly and showed a low level of play. The Dutchman made 5 double faults in a row and Draper even won a game without hitting a single ball. With two breaks in his favour and a strong service game, the Briton managed another convincing win, this time 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.
His next challenge will be Czech Tomas Machac (No. 39), who, like Draper, has had an inspired run at Flushing Meadows and is yet to drop a set after three impressive wins.
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