Jack Draper has waltzed into the second round of the men’s singles at Wimbledon after a dominant win over Sebastian Baez.
Home favourite Draper has been tipped by some to content for the title in SW19, going into the tournament as British No 1 and World No 4.
And, while he at times looked nervy with some unforced errors in the first set, the left-hander was overall in control against his Argentine opponent and well on his way to victory before Baez retired.
Draper dropped just five games in the victory, winning the first two sets 6-2, 6-2 – and he was also 2-1 up by the time the game was called off in the third and final set.
It took just one hour to reach the third set, with Baez clearly struggling as the match went on.
It was at the start of the third set that Baez served his third double fault of the match to put Draper on the cusp of an incredibly simple break. More deep hitting when the serve lifted off secured the break and, rather than regroup at his chair, Baez – clearly in some pain – retired.
In truth, this wasn’t much of a competition. Draper dominated throughout and this could well be seen as the first hurdle of a history-making run.
In the second set, he won all 12 points on his first serve and hit 13 winners. Baez, meanwhile, managed none.
After the game, Draper said: ‘I wanted to play a bit longer in all honesty, I was feeling like I was getting my tennis off the ground. It’s no way to win like that, and I wish Sebastian the best, of course.
‘I don’t think about it [playing in front of a British crowd] until people mention it every five minutes! I just focus on the things I can control. I just have to give my very best, and play the best tennis that I can. I’m really looking forward to this second round.
‘I’ve got to face whoever’s in front of me, I can’t be thinking about five matches ahead. Everyone in this draw is in off their own merit, and every one of these guys can all play amazing tennis.’
Draper enters his third Wimbledon with the weight of expectation on his shoulders after a glittering 12 months that has seen him reach the US Open semi-final, win a Masters tournament at Indian Wells and go into his home Grand Slam as the fourth seed.
He has been studying clips of two-time winner Andy Murray – who won’t be playing at SW19 for the first time in 20 years – and hopes to take inspiration.
‘He’s a huge inspiration for me,’ said 23-year-old Londoner Draper of Murray. ‘Watching him play Wimbledon and just the legacy he leaves behind, it’s massive.
‘I have obviously not had the chance to see him around loads. I have been looking back over old videos of him playing and I’m always very inspired by him. I’m looking forward to seeing him. When I say watching Andy, I have drawn a lot of inspiration from watching him play.
‘I used to watch him on Sky Sports playing all the Grand Slams, obviously Wimbledon on the BBC, and just seeing the ups and downs of his matches and how he’s able to claw them back.
‘He had competitive spirit and unbelievable craft on the court. So whenever I watch him play, I’m reminded of the times I used to watch him and wanted to be a player myself. Watching him always inspires me the next day to want to improve even more.’