Draper wins thriller to join Fearnley in third round

Australian Open 2025

Dates: 12-26 January Venue: Melbourne Park

Coverage: Live radio commentary on Tennis Breakfast from 07:00 GMT on BBC 5 Sports Extra, plus live text commentaries on the BBC Sport website and app

British number one Jack Draper dug deep into his reserves to beat home hope Thanasi Kokkinakis over five gruelling sets to reach the Australian Open third round.

Draper, seeded 15th, has been dealing with a hip injury but came through to win 6-7 (3-7) 6-3 3-6 7-5 6-3 in Melbourne.

Kokkinakis, ranked 71st, served for the match at 5-4 in the fourth set but 23-year-old Draper broke to love and went on to win the decider with a single late break.

"I wouldn't say I'm playing my best tennis. Obviously I've had a tough preparation," said US Open semi-finalist Draper, who plays another Australian next in Aleksandar Vukic.

"I'm really proud of my mentality, my body, and the way I competed."

Jacob Fearnley, a childhood friend of Draper, earlier became the first Briton to reach the last 32 at this year's tournament - his first overseas Grand Slam.

The British number three continued his stunning rise with a 3-6 7-5 6-2 6-3 win over France's Arthur Cazaux amid a rowdy atmosphere at Melbourne Park.

The 23-year-old Scot kept his composure to beat home favourite Nick Kyrgios in his opening match and backed that win up with another assured display.

The world number 92, who only left university last April, has been rewarded with a tie against German second seed Alexander Zverev next.

Draper demonstrates durability again

Jack Draper has reached the Australian Open third round for the first time in his career

When Draper slumped in his chair at a break down in the fourth set, it appeared his lack of preparation coming into the first major of the season had taken its toll.

His hip injury sabotaged his off-season work and Monday's gritty opening win over Argentina's Mariano Navone was his first competitive match since the end of October.

With 88 unforced errors coming off his racquet, the Englishman needed to "show heart" to beat Navone in over four hours.

Draper admitted afterwards he was having to "look after" his body.

It is testament to his increasing durability - mentally as much as physically - that he was able to navigate his way past Kokkinakis in another marathon battle.

"It's a huge step forward. I've been working physically a lot for a long time," said Draper.

"When people say 'you're not fit enough' and all of this sort of stuff, it's a part of it.

"It's been really difficult the last few years with question marks over long matches."

Draper also had to block out the noise of a ferocious home crowd who were willing on their player - too overexuberantly for chair umpire Marijana Veljovic at times - towards the third round for the first time in his career.

Kokkinakis received a medical time-out at the end of the second set

Despite his own physical issues with a shoulder injury, Kokkinakis still managed to serve at a scarcely-believable level - particularly in the first set where he barely missed a first serve.

The 28-year-old Australian continued to dominate his games in the fourth set to leave him serving for the match, but getting over the line proved difficult.

Cupping his hand to his ear after he broke to love, Draper signalled how much he was relishing the fight.

A tight deciding set could have swung either way, but Draper pounced at a vital time and served out to love before a muted celebration.

"My first match was four hours and I don't want to be out here for that long," Draper added.

"But I'm getting better with each set and I'm really proud with the way I'm going about my tennis."

'Extremely nervous' Fearnley continues ascent

Jacob Fearnley climbed into the top 100 after a meteoric rise in 2024

Barely anyone outside of British tennis circles had heard of Fearnley this time last year.

While eyes were on the pinnacle of sport at Melbourne Park, he was playing events on the third-tier ITF Tour and still finishing his kinesiology degree in the United States.

Last April he left Texas Christian University and then came the stunning rise which has been one of the quickest in ATP history.

Winning five ATP Challenger events in 2024 propelled him into the top 100 and enabled him to qualify directly for this year's Australian Open main draw.

Like every other test he has faced over recent months, he has not been fazed by the experience.

After beating 2022 Wimbledon finalist Kyrgios in front of a partisan home crowd on Monday, Fearnley might have been forgiven for thinking it would be a quieter evening on the outside courts.

But, with a vocal French support backing Cazaux and also galvanising the British fans, his college tennis experience helped him once again.

Fearnley trailed 2-0 before a rain delay and quickly went another break down when they returned to court an hour later in cool and windy conditions.

He lost serve again early in the second set, but immediately clawed the break back and swung the momentum in his favour.

His fluid and fast groundstrokes were too much for Cazaux to handle, enabling him to confidently win the final two sets before looking stunned when he clinched victory.

"I was extremely nervous at the end because I started hitting some double faults. I really didn't want to serve out the match," Fearnley said.

"When I did it was a little bit emotional."