Jack Draper is making a grand job in his attempt to prove he is cut from the same cloth as Andy Murray, winning in style at Indian Wells.
The British No.1 demolished Denmark’s dangerous Holger Rune in straight sets in a blistering final to move into the top ten in the world.
He is now a career-high seventh in the world rankings, just below Casper Ruud and Novak Djokovic and is just four places behind Carlos Alcaraz, last year’s double grand-slam winner, who he beat in the semi-finals to show he can beat the very best in tennis.
The 23-year-old from Surrey is above Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev and Alex de Minaur, among others, and – if he can stay fit -is only going to get better.
Victory at Indian Wells was his first in an ATP Masters 1,000 event, which is one standard level down from the four grand slams, and the left-hander must now show he can cope with the pressure by adding another title to his portfolio.
It’s a tough assignment flying across the United States and completing the Sunshine Double by winning the Miami Open but the greatest athletes find a way to succeed.
Draper has overcome some of the doubts over his ability to stay injury free and also appears to have cast aside the nerves which resulted in him throwing up on court in his US Open semi-final defeat to Jannik Sinner and immediately after his Australian Open first-round victory over Marcos Giron.
He looks strong, mentally and physically, and can start mixing it with the best in the business.
It’s a shame the Miami Open is the last tournament before the clay season starts in Europe as that is the least effective part of his game but Draper will be a huge factor at Wimbledon while another deep run can be expected at Flushing Meadows as he chases a first grand-slam crown.
Draper is 14/1 with Betway to win Wimbledon and 25/1 with the same firm to light up the Big Apple by claiming the US Open in September.
More immediately, he is 11/1 with Star Sport make his opposition feel sick at the prospect of facing his 6ft 4in frame as he powers to victory in Miami.
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• Emma Raducanu is experiencing a rough start to the year, winning just three of nine matches and slipping to 60th in the WTA rankings. She was bounced out in the first round at Indian Wells last week but can gain confidence by beating Sayaka Ishii in straight sets at 7/10 with Ladbrokes and Coral to get her Miami Open campaign off to a flying start.
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