Jack Draper has been dumped out of the Miami Open in the second round by teenage sensation Jakub Mensik. It comes after the Brit lifted the biggest title of his career at Indian Wells last week.
Draper had been granted a bye into the competition’s second round but was given the runaround by an inspired Mensik on Saturday afternoon in Florida. The Czech ace progressed into the last 32 by virtue of a 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-3) victory over Draper, who looked a shell of the player who beat Holger Rune in the Indian Wells final last weekend.
Mensik, who continues to make a name for himself on the ATP Tour, has now recorded six victories out of his nine matches against players in the top 10. But despite being just 19 years old, he played way beyond his years and handled himself with plenty of experience and maturity.
Draper, now ranked seventh in the world, lagged behind Mensik in his first-serve effectiveness, with the 22-year-old registering 76 per cent of his efforts compared to his opponents’ 86 per cent. Mensik will now face either Roman Safiullin or Alexei Popyrin in the next round of the Miami Open.
However, the match had been disrupted midway through after boos were heard from, presumably, Brazillian fans in the crowd. It came after it was announced Joao Fonseca’s match had been moved from the grandstand, where Draper and Mensik were playing, to a different court.
It caused a momentary pause in proceedings, with the match suspended while the disgruntled fans scuttled out of the arena. The umpire, addressing the issue, said: “One more time, for the respect of the players on this court, they are not responsible for anything, please be quiet.”
There were no such struggles for Novak Djokovic earlier in the second round action, with the Serb defeating Rinky Hijikata 0-6, 6-7 (1-7). Reacting to his victory, the all-time Grand slam record holder said: “I had two weeks since the last match that I played in Indian Wells, so I had plenty of time to work on my game. I think that has positively reflected on my game today, particularly for set and a half, almost flawless tennis. I’m very pleased with the way I felt and played on the court.”
His last win on the ATP Tour came over a year ago, with Djokovic keen to end his drought in the Sunshine State. He’ll now face Camilo Ugo Carabelli for a spot in the last-16 on Sunday.