Draper edged out in Wimbledon final
But British tennis could still have a new young star after Draper pushed world junior number one and top seed Tseng Chun-hsin all the way.
The 16-year-old son of former Lawn Tennis Association chief executive Roger Draper - a former Winstanley College student who hails from Wigan, and still has family in the area - and thrilled a huge crowd on Court One with some audacious shot-making during his 6-1 6-7 (2/7) 6-4 defeat.
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Hide AdThe highlight from the left-hander was a game secured with a ‘hot dog’ shot through his legs to level the second set at 6-6.
Some of the histrionics might need to be toned down, though. The dance move at the net from Draper after breaking back for 4-4 in the third probably riled his opponent, while a few games earlier a racket was a casualty of his frustration.
Tseng, also 16 and already up to 601 in the senior rankings, had raced away with the first four games before Draper got on the scoreboard.
A huge cheer went up when Draper held his serve with a fantastic forehand down the line.
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Hide AdThe roars were even louder when Draper, who spent four hours and 24 minutes overcoming Colombia’s Nicolas Mejia in the semi-final, grabbed a break of serve early in the second set.
Tseng broke back but the momentum was well and truly with Surrey-born Draper and he charged through the tie-break to take the match into a decider.
Breaks were exchanged throughout the third set, but it was Tseng who grabbed what turned out to be the crucial one to lead 5-4.
He finished Draper off with a second serve ace down the middle.
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Hide AdDraper hopes to be back next year for the junior event, having got a taste for the big stage.
“I felt the adrenaline from the crowd, having that many people watching me was a surreal feeling,” he said.
“In the first set it was the sense of occasion, and there was a tiny bit of pressure on me as a Brit, but I went from there.
“It gave me a lot of confidence, it was amazing. I’m still taking it in, it’s been an unbelievable week.”