British tennis star OUT of Wimbledon after specialist advised not to risk further damage on injured shoulder
JACK DRAPER is out of Wimbledon after deciding it was not worth the risk of inflicting more damage to his injured shoulder.
The British No 4 was left “mentally destroyed” when he picked up the injury last week in Paris which resulted in his retirement from the first round of the French Open.
The Sutton southpaw could not serve overarm and eventually walked away after going 6-4 1-0 down to Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry.
Following a scan, a specialist has advised him to rest and recuperate rather than try to play at SW19 next month and potentially make the issue even worse.
The 21-year-old – who reached the second round of Wimbledon last year – is expected to return to the circuit in late July.
He will then focus on trips to North America and the build-up to the US Open in New York.
The only consolation is that he will NOT require surgery for the problem.
Emma Raducanu, the 2021 US Open champion, is also missing Wimbledon as she recovers from having had three surgeries.
Draper wrote on Instagram: “It’s clear my shoulder is going to need time and rehab to get back to where it needs to be.
“My team and I have made the difficult decision to miss the grass-court season this year.
“I guess in this sport there are so many ups and downs but this one is tough to take.
“The only thing for sure is that I will keep persevering. Thank you for all the support I get on here it means a lot.”