Jack Draper's injury struggles are showing no signs of easing, and a prominent sports science authority is now urging extreme caution around how the 24-year-old manages his return to the ATP Tour.
Stephen Smith, founder and CEO of Kitman Labs, a world-leading sports science and performance intelligence company, spoke exclusively to Tennis365 about Draper's persistent bone bruising in his left humerus. Smith confirmed the condition is notoriously slow to heal and warned that continuing to overload the arm could ultimately cause a stress fracture.
The concern feels especially pressing after Draper's recent outings. At the Canadian Open, his serve speed dropped visibly during a third-set collapse against Terence Atmane, and the British star broke down in tears at a changeover while trailing 1-4. He then suffered a 6-3, 7-5 defeat to Martin Landaluce in the opening round of the Cincinnati Open, squandering six set points after holding a 5-2 lead in the second set.
Smith described the Canadian Open moment as genuinely difficult to watch, noting that a significant drop in serve velocity is a clear signal that something is preventing a player from generating force properly through the kinetic chain. His prescription for Draper centers on rigorous, detailed load monitoring. Time on court alone is not enough, he stressed; coaches and medical staff need to track speeds, impacts, directional changes, and racket speed to fully understand the physical demands being placed on the arm.
Draper reached a career-high ranking of world No. 4 in June of last year but has played only 16 matches since his second-round Wimbledon loss to Marin Cilic more than 13 months ago. The road back remains steep.
TennisDraw users had Draper circled as a player to watch this summer, making his ongoing battle all the more heartbreaking to follow.
