Britain's Draper out of US Open with arm injury

Jack Draper previously said he had been struggling with the arm injury for several months

US Open 2025

Venue: Flushing Meadows, New York Dates: 24 August-7 September

Coverage: Live radio commentaries across 5 Live Sport and BBC Sounds, plus live text commentaries on the BBC Sport website & app

British number one Jack Draper has withdrawn from the US Open because of an arm injury.

The fifth seed was seen as one of the contenders for the title at Flushing Meadows, having reached the semi-finals last year, but his preparations were disrupted by the injury.

The 23-year-old came through his first-round match against Argentine qualifier Federico Agustin Gomez in four tricky sets on Tuesday.

He was due to play Belgium's Zizou Bergs on Thursday.

"I tried my very best to be here and give myself the every chance to play but the discomfort in my arm has become too much," Draper wrote in a statement on X.

"I have to do what is right and look after myself."

'Bone injuries are difficult to handle'

Draper said before the tournament that he was "ready to go" despite struggling with a bruised humerus - the bone that runs from the shoulder to elbow - on his left serving arm.

He began to feel the issue during the clay-court swing in April and said it got "progressively worse" over the grass-court season.

Draper arrived in New York having not played since his second-round defeat at Wimbledon in early July, withdrawing from key tournaments in Canada and Cincinnati in order to recover.

The Englishman competed in the US Open mixed doubles tournament alongside Jessica Pegula last week and wore a sleeve on his injured arm during his first-round match.

Draper practised in New York on Wednesday morning but later announced he would be unable to continue in the tournament.

Former world number nine Andrea Petkovic said on Radio 5 Live that she was "not surprised" to hear about Draper's withdrawal.

"Adrenaline can do things to your body - you might feel fine for weeks and after a four-set match it can feel aggravated," she said.

"Bone injuries are difficult to handle. They can always come back if you come back too early."

Analysis

Jonathan Jurejko, BBC Sport senior tennis reporter in New York

It had been difficult to assess how serious Draper's arm injury was during his time in New York.

Initially he was upbeat about his recovery, insisting he was ready to go and would not be holding back in his first-round match.

But there have been clues that it was more of a problem than he had been letting on.

Draper did not go full throttle with his serve during the match against Gomez, relying on precision and patience instead of power.

In a news conference on Monday, Draper – who has a reputation as an open and honest talker – spoke more about the setbacks he had encountered in his recovery, but said he was confident of doing no more damage here.

So what has changed over the past 48 hours?

We know he practised at Flushing Meadows on Tuesday after his opening win – seemingly testing out his playing arm by leathering some forehands - and also hit on Wednesday morning.

This tough decision will have ramifications for his ranking. He is likely to drop out of the top 10 when his points from last year's run to the semi-finals fall away.

It will also hamper his chances of playing at the season-ending ATP Finals, especially if he has to take another extended break to solve the issue.