Jack Draper getting ‘conditioned to competing’ as Andy Murray link-up develops

Jack Draper overcame a stomach bug and scorching temperatures to defeat close friend Jack Pinnington Jones at the Lexus Eastbourne Open.

Amid a weather warning due to extreme heat, Draper booked a place in the quarter-finals of the Wimbledon warm-up event with a 7-5 6-4 win over his fellow Briton.

Victory in an hour and a half maintained his encouraging start under new coach Andy Murray as he continues his comeback from the persistent arm issue and a chronic knee problem.

The former world number four wore a protective sleeve on his left arm on Wednesday but insisted it was not related to fitness.

“I’ve always worn a sleeve for sweat because otherwise I sweat very heavily and the grip gets destroyed very quickly,” said Draper, who was playing only his second match in more than two months.

“It wasn’t to do with my arm injury. I had a bit of a stomach ache, stomach bug today, so I was struggling a little bit with that.

“But, apart from that, playing these matches again, when you test yourself, when you come through tough sets in tough conditions it gets easier as it goes along.

“You get more and more conditioned to competing. It’s obviously very different to the practice court so I think every match I’ll keep get better and better on that front.”

https://x.com/the_LTA/status/2069848082846503395?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Temperatures had dropped slightly to around 30 degrees when Draper eventually walked out on court in late afternoon.

With two-time Wimbledon winner Murray again watching from the sidelines, he broke Pinnington Jones in game three and then closed out the opening set with successive aces after dropping serve during a temporary wobble in game 10.

The 2024 US Open semi-finalist won the opening two games of set two and