Jack Draper fulfilled a childhood dream by reaching his first Queen’s semi-final with a testing three-set victory over American Brandon Nakashima.
The 6-4 5-7 6-4 win guarantees Draper will be a top-four seed in next week’s Wimbledon draw and would therefore not be able to meet world number one Jannik Sinner or defending champion Carlos Alcaraz until the semi-final stage.
Draper, who came through a tough three-setter against Alexei Popyrin in the previous round when he was feeling unwell, found himself in another energy-sapping encounter against Nakashima on a hot day in west London.
Having taken charge of the first set with an early break, the errors crept into Draper’s game and Nakashima raised his level to take the second set and force the absorbing encounter into a decider.
Draper made the key breakthrough in the seventh game of the third set, converting his second break point with a powerful forehand and he then served out victory to set up a semi-final against Czech Jiri Lehecka, who had earlier beaten British number two Jacob Fearnley 7-5 6-2.
“The support I have received this week has been amazing,” Draper, 23, said. “It’s something I’ve wanted since I was a little kid.”
