Britain’s Jack Draper slumped to a stunning defeat to Dutch qualifier Jesper de Jong in the French Open first round on Sunday.
Draper was looking to reach the second round at Roland Garros for the first time after first-round defeats in each of the past two years.
The 22-year-old struggled with his serve and looked to be heading for a straight-sets defeat, although he rescued the third set from three games behind and was leading in the fourth set until the match was suspended due to rain.
When play restarted, Draper secured the fourth set, sending the match to a fifth-set decider for only the second time in his career. However, the Brit was overpowered by De Jong and ended in a 7-5, 6-4, 6-7(3), 3-6, 6-3 defeat.
“I’m obviously extremely disappointed right now. Like, this loss hurts a lot. I think I’m in a good place, you know, compared to last year having all my injuries and stuff,” Draper said.
“I’ve played a long match there. Felt physically great. I look at the positives on that side, but my tennis… I know I’m so much better than how I played today, and that’s what hurts. That’s the thing. We have to have a short-term memory in tennis, and there will be more opportunities to come. I just hope that I can learn from this loss and start — you know, keep on progressing in the right direction.”
De Jong is world No. 177, a way below 35th-ranked Draper.
“I think qualifying for a grand slam is a big achievement,” Draper said. “Everyone in that qually draw is a good player, so I was expecting it to be really tough. I know him. I know a lot of people, they think it’s only the top 100 players in the world that play at a very high level. They’re wrong. Everyone plays great, and they can play great on the day as well.”
Elsewhere, Andy Murray will play his first-round match later on Sunday against Stan Wawrinka.
Three-time Grand Slam champion Murray has recovered from an ankle injury, featuring in the French open singles main draw for what is expected to be the final time.
Even if Murray loses on Sunday, it will not be his final appearance at Roland Garros. He was handed a wildcard for the men’s doubles competition with compatriot Dan Evans. Their first match is scheduled for Tuesday.
Information from Tom Hamilton contributed to this report.
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