By Richard Pagliaro | @TennisNow | Thursday, March 13, 2025
Photo credit: Tony Chang/Chang Photography
Southwest London is the center of the sporting universe for two weeks each summer.
While Wimbledon is the most prestigious tennis tournament in the world, several European nations outshine Great Britain’s tennis culture, says British No. 1 Jack Draper.
Speaking to the media in Indian Wells after his 7-5 6-4 win over 2022 BNP Paribas Open champion Taylor Fritz, Draper said tennis is more beloved by other European nations.
“I think England, we obviously have Wimbledon. That’s, you know, one of the biggest sporting events in the world,” Draper said. “I’d say for three weeks of the year we are massively into tennis. I think we have been extremely fortunate obviously to have Andy Murray and other players who have really, you know, shown me the way and inspired me to be a top player in myself.
“I’d say our actual culture for tennis isn’t huge in the UK.”
Last September, Draper became the fourth British man in Open Era history to reach the US Open semifinals.
The 23-year-old Draper said he hopes his generation of rising British players, including former US Open champion Emma Raducanu, can help grow the game at home.
“Obviously other tennis nations, you know, I think have it better with Italy and Spain and France,” Draper said. “They love tennis a lot more than we do as a nation, but I think, you know, hopefully with what’s to come with the grass and hopefully players like myself and Emma and other top players coming through that we can really put on a good show and inspire a lot of people to play.”
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