Jack Draper hopes his “atrocious” new Aussie-style mohican mullet will get him home support Down Under. And the British pack have sworn to get the same severe cut if the world No.55 wins his first Major title at the Australian Open.
The big left-hander, 22, is trending in the right direction after following his best ever Grand Slam showing in New York – where he reached the fourth round – by reaching his first two ATP Tour finals.
But the big talking point before his second Australian Open appearance is his drastic new hairstyle for the new season.
“Some people might say it’s atrocious but I’d say it’s bold, isn’t it?” he laughed. “I saw a barber last week in Adelaide. And they did it and my coach (James Trotman) was like: ‘It looks like they faded it much better, it looks good’. I said to him, ‘It’s not bold enough’. So I went to a Turkish barbers here (Melbourne) and you know they’ll do the job all right.”
Draper, who successfully challenged the British media to get the same if he lifts the title on Sunday, January 28, added: “I’ve been going for this for a couple of months now. But I went to Adelaide with it, and I was saying to Trots: ‘Everyone’s going to be looking at me’. And then turns out everyone in the city had the same haircut! I might get a few more fans here because of it. I like to be different and express myself. I think that’s part of tennis, right , expressing your game on the court. And I think I’m a bit different in that aspect.”
The British No.4, who faces American Marcos Giron in the first round on Tuesday, lost the Adelaide International final on Saturday to fellow rising star Jiri Lehecka. But he beat three higher-ranked players – Sebastian Baez, Tommy Paul and Alexander Bublik – on the way to his consecutive finals on the ATP Tour after also reaching the Sofia Open final in November.
Draper, who missed Wimbledon last year with a shoulder injury and has lost three kilograms for this season, reported: “I had a great week. I played a lot of tennis. My second-round match (Miomir Kecmanovic) was a really long one and then to back up those performances again against top players was great.
“Obviously I came up short and the final – I was very frustrated about that. But it’s part of the journey. I’m doing a lot of great things on the court. I’m improving all the time, I think. I’ve just gotta keep going. And it gives me a lot of confidence that I’m able to go deeper in these tournaments now.”
