Jack Draper is positioned sixth in the ATP world rankings for men’s singles.
Jack Draper advanced to the Madrid Open round of 16 after Matteo Berrettini retired due to injury, following the resumption of play prompted by a national power outage.
Competition was halted in Madrid on Monday after a power failure disrupted the electronic line-calling system and scoreboards.
After power was restored on Tuesday, fifth seed Draper faced Italy’s Berrettini, who is currently ranked 30th in the world.
Draper claimed the first set 7-6 in a tiebreak after 57 minutes, converting his third set point to take the lead.
Following the opening set, Berrettini decided to retire after a conversation with Draper, citing abdominal discomfort.
“He said his abs were pulling,” Draper reflected post-match. “You have to give him credit for competing and for a solid first set.”
“Matteo is a very positive competitor, so it is always tough to see a friend struggling with injuries. I know it’s been a recurring issue for him,” Draper added.
Draper is set to play American Tommy Paul in the next round.
Jacob Fearnley (pictured left) progressed through qualifying to reach the Madrid Open main draw.
Earlier in the day, Grigor Dimitrov secured a quarter-final berth by converting his third match point—over 24 hours after his first—against Jacob Fearnley.
Their match, paused during Monday’s outage with Dimitrov leading 6-4 5-4, resumed Tuesday following Iga Swiatek’s three-set win over Diana Shnaider.
Bulgaria’s Dimitrov ultimately prevailed 6-4 7-6 (7-3) over the 23-year-old Briton.
Fearnley had to serve to stay in contention as play resumed and, despite a double fault, managed to prolong the contest.
World number 16 Dimitrov earned a second match point on Fearnley’s serve at 6-5, but the Scot saved it before forcing a tie-break.
Dimitrov dominated the tie-break, winning the final five points consecutively.
He will now meet Canada’s Gabriel Diallo, who overcame Britain’s Cameron Norrie.
Diallo, who gained entry to the tournament as a lucky loser, fought back to defeat the world number 91 Norrie 2-6 6-4 6-4.
Dining by candlelight and limited facilities at Madrid Open
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/articles/c86j2nyx2nno
In a notable upset, men’s top seed Alexander Zverev was defeated in straight sets by the 20th seed, Francisco Cerundolo, on Tuesday evening.
Argentina’s Cerundolo recorded a 7-5 6-3 victory to reach the quarter-finals, with Germany’s Zverev unable to convert any of his break point opportunities.
Earlier in the women’s draw, defending champion Iga Swiatek extended her winning streak in Madrid to nine matches, overcoming Russia’s Diana Shnaider 6-0 6-7 (3-7) 6-4.
Poland’s Swiatek, despite making over 50 unforced errors, saved 11 of 13 break points to edge past Shnaider.
She next faces Madison Keys—who defeated Swiatek in the Australian Open semi-finals en route to her maiden major title—after Keys overcame Croatia’s Donna Vekic 6-2 6-3.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka also reached the quarter-finals, dispatching American Peyton Stearns 6-2 6-4 in straight sets.