Britain’s Jack Draper vomited on court during a dramatic US Open semi-final defeat by world number one Jannik Sinner.
The 22-year-old British number one’s breakout run at a Grand Slam tournament ended in a 7-5 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 defeat in New York.
In the biggest match of his fledgling career, 25th seed Draper caused problems for Sinner in a tight first set.
But as the contest became more physical in the second set, a peaky-looking Draper vomited three times and was unable to inflict enough damage on Sinner’s serve.
The third set quickly got out of control for Draper, who looked spent as he wearily hugged his good friend Sinner after the Italian moved into his first US Open final.
“I’m definitely someone who is quite an anxious human being,” said Draper.
“I think when you add all that together, sometimes I do feel a bit of nausea on court, and I do feel a little bit sick when it gets tough.
“I didn’t have any problems before the match, but it obviously just built up.”
Sinner will go on to face American 12th seed Taylor Fritz in Sunday’s final.
“It was a very physical match. I tried to stay there mentally. He is tough to beat,” said Australian Open champion Sinner, who is aiming for a second major title.
Draper beaten but plenty to be proud about
Long heralded as the future of British men’s tennis, Draper has enjoyed a boundary-breaking season where he has won his first ATP title, become his nation’s leading player and reached the semi-finals of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time.
Fittingly, his run to the US Open last four – on a medium-fast hard court which suits his explosive game – came in the first major since Andy Murray retired.
The left-hander from Surrey has ran with the baton passed by former world number one Murray.
However, he was unable to become the first British man to reach a major final since the Scot.
The early part of Draper’s career was littered with fitness issues and building up his body to withstand the rigours of a brutal sport has been the catalyst for his success this year.
Nervous tension, though, has been a factor. He was sick immediately after securing victory in the Australian Open first round back in January, putting that down to the “psychological stress” of the situation.
“Sometimes in the match you’re anxious and it builds up in certain moments,” said Draper.
“I definitely felt 5- 5 in the first set was a big game. I threw in a couple of double faults, it was deuce a few times.
“When I came out for the first game in the second set he was trying to get the break in the first game, and I managed to hold him off, but I was starting to not feel great in that moment.”
Once the disappointment settles, he will reflect with huge pride on an encouraging two weeks which indicates there are more exciting times ahead for British tennis fans.
Draper was ranked 123rd in the world this time last year but will become a top-20 player for the first time next week.
How dramatic semi-final unfolded
A series of composed performances had seen Draper break new ground in New York, moving into the semi-finals without dropping a set.
While he had played cooly and clinically, there was a question mark about how the left-hander would fare against an opponent of Sinner’s class.
Draper’s first four opponents were ranked below him – and he avoided playing Spanish superstar Carlos Alcaraz in the third round following the French Open and Wimbledon champion’s shock defeat in round two.
Quarter-final opponent Alex de Minaur, seeded 10th, was hampered by fitness problems, too.
In the opening exchanges of the semi-final, Draper pushed Sinner – who has seemingly put the controversy of testing positive for a banned substance earlier this year behind him – but three double faults proved costly as the Italian broke decisively for 6-5.
Then, tension mounted for Draper in a bizarre second set.
While clearly struggling, he continued to hang onto his serve in the face of four break opportunities for Sinner before twice being sick on court after points.
In a madcap ninth game, his vomit caused the match to be briefly paused while the surface was cleaned, before 23-year-old Sinner fell retrieving a return near the advertising board behind the baseline and damaged his left wrist in the process.
Both men required treatment at the same time – a rare sight.
Sinner upped the ante in the tie-break, thumping groundstrokes to push Draper back behind the baseline, and drawing mistakes to move into a two-set lead.
The uphill task facing Draper – watched on by his family, including mother Nicky whose flight from London landed in New York at 2am earlier on Friday – appeared insurmountable.
Draper showed resilience to continue fighting against the best player in the world, refusing to retire like he had to do on several occasions earlier in his career.
But his resolve finally wavered as Sinner rattled off the final four games to secure victory in three hours and three minutes.
“Jannik plays at such a high level all the time. I had chances here and there and I didn’t take them,” said Draper.
“I obviously wasn’t feeling my best and struggled at certain periods of the match, but Jannik beat me fair and square.”
