No. 5 seed Jack Draper withdraws from the US Open with an injury

NEW YORK (AP) — Jack Draper, a U.S. Open semifinalist in 2024 and the No. 5 seed this year, withdrew from the tournament Wednesday with an injury.

He was scheduled for a second-round match against Zizou Bergs, who advanced to the third round by walkover.

Draper hadn’t played since a second-round loss at Wimbledon and the left-hander said before singles play began in this tournament that he had been battling a painful bone bruise in his upper arm that bothered him when he hit serves or forehands.

The British player then beat qualifier Federico Agustin Gomez of Argentina in four sets in his first-round match on Monday, saying afterward that he wasn’t able to serve with his normal power.

“I tried my very best to be here and give myself the every chance to play but the discomfort in my arm has become (too) much and I have to do what is right and look after myself,” Draper wrote on social media.

Draper had reached at least the third round in all three previous appearances at the U.S. Open. Last year he became the first man since Daniil Medvedev in 2020 to reach the semifinals without dropping a set before losing to eventual champion Jannik Sinner.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis