British number one tennis star Jack Draper is set to return to his home tournament at the HSBC Championships next week.
The athlete, 23, will join fellow champs Carlos Alcaraz, Holger Rune and Ben Shelton as they battle it out to be crowned king of the grass courts.
Having aced the grass court season last year, Draper, who is now fourth in the world rankings, has been earmarked as a favourite.
Speaking to the Lawn Tennis Association earlier this year, Jack said: “My tennis is getting better but more so the belief I have in myself, and my physical and mental capability as well… I’m looking forward to coming back to Queen’s this year and hopefully showing some really good tennis.”
As with any sport, there’s typically a whole village working behind the scenes to offer support. “I’m lucky to have such amazing people support me on a daily basis,” he once said in 2024. “That’s kind of what brings the glue together as a tennis player.”
As the sports star gears up for his next tournament, join HELLO! as we take a deep dive into Jack’s inner circle, including his famous parents, his brother Ben and his close friends Emma Raducanu and Paul Jubb.
© Getty ImagesHis parents Roger and Nicky
Sutton-born Jack was catapulted into the world of tennis from an early age. He was introduced to the sport by his mother, Nicky, who is a former British junior champion, and attended his first training session at the tender age of six.
The pair remain extremely close, with Jack reportedly calling Nicky first after every win on court.
His father, Roger, meanwhile, was an amateur tennis player and is the former chief executive of Sport England, as well as the Lawn Tennis Association – a position he held from 2006 to 2013.
© InstagramHis brother Ben
Jack and his brother Ben both attended the private Reed’s school.
The pair grew up around tennis, with Ben playing the sport at US college level while studying at the University of California, Berkeley.
While he no longer plays tennis professionally, Ben is now his brother’s agent.
© Getty ImagesHis friendship group
Jack has spoken publicly about his friendships with fellow tennis ace Emma Raducanu and Paul Jubb. The trio have moved in the same circle for years, having taken part in the same tournaments.
In an interview with The Times, Jack said of his bond with Emma: “She has always been there for me. I’ve always been there for her. She’s extremely bubbly, very kind, very thoughtful, always giggling, really smart. A really, really, really good girl.”
He’s also extremely close with tennis player Paul Jubb, with the pair now living together in southwest London. “I think I said to him at some point, you know, ‘I’d like to try and get my own place in London, and it’d be cool to get a place together,” Paul told the Lawn Tennis Association in their Beyond the Baseline YouTube series.
Jack added: “We were both kind of injured at the time, things weren’t going great. So I suppose we kind of just bonded through the tennis… I don’t have many friends, but I’d say he really is a very close friend of mine.”
© Getty ImagesSupport from Andy Murray and Jannik Sinner
Having rocketed up the rankings, Jack has increasingly leant on several tennis legends, including Andy Murray and Jannik Sinner.
Sharing a glimpse inside his relationship with Andy, Jack previously said: “I know Andy is there for me if I need it, but at the same time, I feel pretty relaxed. I feel pretty good, and I’m just taking it one day at a time and looking to keep on going forward.”
Over the years, Jack has also grown close to Italian tennis player, Jannik Sinner, with whom he played doubles. “We send each other messages in good moments, bad moments,” Jack said last year.
“It’s a tough sport to play when you’re a young guy. You’re on the road, you’re playing such a relentlessly intense sport, both physically, emotionally, and it’s difficult, we haven’t got many friends. So to sort of have the support of someone who’s going through it themselves is really big.”
Read the full article here
