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DESPITE THEIR STANDING ON THE COURT, JACK DRAPER AND EMMA RADUCANU HAVE LIFTED THE LID ON THE TOUGH REALITIES THAT COME WITH BEING TWO OF THE GAME'S BIGGEST STARS 11:21, 30 May 2025
Jack Draper has fought his way into the third round of the French Open and seems to have the game at his feet. Yet he has acknowledged the significant personal sacrifices required to reach
the top. Draper's candid admission about the "lonely" nature of life on tour and its challenges for maintaining relationships has also been echoed by fellow Brit Emma
Raducanu. Draper, 23, triumphed over France's Gael Monfils in an intense late-night thriller on Thursday, keeping his hopes alive in Paris. Raducanu was defeated by four-time Roland
Garros winner Iga Swiatek in the second round. As well as the highs and lows, both have agreed that life on the tour comes at a private cost. And the British stars are believed to remain
single as they grapple with the isolation that attaches itself to tennis stardom. "I'm always on the road. Always playing, always training. It's tough to sustain any form of
relationship," Draper told Tatler this year. As per the Times in January, he admitted that he hopes to settle down with "someone who has got ambition" while adding "good
values" to his criteria. Draper conceded that his current priority is his tennis career, even admitting to finding dating apps "too time-consuming". "The most important
thing to me right now is becoming the best tennis player I can be," he said. Article continues below "Especially the way the world is at the moment with all that [app] stuff.
I'd rather meet someone out of genuine, almost coincidence, or when I'm focused on something else." In a candid conversation back in February, Raducanu shared an insight into
the solitude she experiences on the professional tour, finding comfort in books. "I'm reading Emma, but reading it for pleasure," she said. "It's not the easiest to
read sometimes, but I think it's a great story. And of course, with the name, I just had to go for it. This year, I've gone on loads of solo walks, solo coffee dates and just have
a lot of time to kind of look inside and look internally. I've been enjoying it so far, even though it's not necessarily the easiest thing to do, especially when the tour is quite
a lonely place." Draper also opened up about the isolating aspects of tennis, revealing his doubts about continuing in the sport. "I went through many ups and downs," he said
in March. "Not just physically but also from a mental standpoint, there was a couple of times when I wasn't sure if I was going to carry on. You know, it's going to a place
for three, four weeks on end, you know, very lonely." Speculation had mounted regarding a possible connection between Raducanu and Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz after she was seen
watching him at the All England Club final last year, but no romantic ties were confirmed. It appears that Raducanu has long been accustomed to a life of independence. "My parents were
very much against [boyfriends] as it interfered with training," the former US Open champion told The Times in 2024. "When I was younger, I wasn’t even allowed to hang out with my
girlfriends." Article continues below Yet, while they may not have found love, it seems Draper and Raducanu have each other as comrades. "She has always been there for me,"
Draper said to The Times about the 22-year-old. "I’ve always been there for her. She’s extremely bubbly, very kind, very thoughtful, always giggling, really smart. A really, really,
really good girl." Draper is now set to face off against Brazil's 18-year-old star Joao Fonseca in the French Open's third round on Saturday.