Jack Draper is ‘very reminiscent’ of Rafael Nadal, says expert as Brit’s impressive French Open run continues at Roland-Garros

Jim Courier compared Jack Draper’s game to that of 14-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal when asked about the British No.1’s chances of winning a Grand Slam.

Draper has soared to No. 5 in the ATP rankings after a career-best campaign that has seen him win Indian Wells and reach the final of last month’s Madrid Open.

And the Brit is also making steady progress this year at Roland-Garros, having dispatched Mattia Bellucci and home favourite Gael Monfils to set up a third-round encounter with Joao Fonseca.

“I think his game is there,” two-time French Open champion Jim Courier exclusively told TNT Sports. “The lefty forehand he’s got is as good as anybody’s right now.

“If you look at the speeds and the spins he is producing, they are very reminiscent of Nadal’s. In fact, the speed is a little bit faster and the spin’s the same.

“He’s 6’ 4 so he has longer levers than the 6′ 1 Nadal did. Is he going to be as great as Rafa? That’s a long shout.

“But, that shot can do a lot of damage and his serve is bigger than Rafa’s ever was.”

Draper has openly discussed struggling with anxiety during high-pressure situations in games, including in his US Open semi-final against Jannik Sinner last year.

Indeed, Courier and TNT Sports pundit Mats Wilander agreed that the 23-year-old may need to overcome his anxiety to compete at tennis’ top table.

“I think he’s come so far,” Courier added. “The question is, how will he handle the moments? Because he was so anxious in the US Open semi-final.

“But since then he’s won Indian Wells, he’s made the final at Madrid. He’s done a lot since then to put that behind him, so we’re going to learn a lot about Jack through the next three majors.

“Not just here but, how does he handle Wimbledon? How does he handle coming back to the US Open? But his game is viable everywhere. I’m not surprised he’s playing well on clay.”

Wilander continued: “You live with your problems, but you could tell against Gael Monfils that his arms slowed down, he started missing some forehands and was getting the same rotation on the ball.

“I heard he gets anxious. I don’t know how you work on that but, the bigger the match, the higher your ranking and the more anxious points you’re going to play, and you’re going to have to win them. Otherwise, you’re not winning Grand Slams as they’re all about the big points.

“You have to play the bigger points better than the points that are less important.”