Carlos Alcaraz leaves emotional message as ‘ticking time bomb’ Jack Draper forced to retire due to injury
Jack Draper's spirited Australian Open run is over after he retired injured against Carlos Alcaraz.
The British No. 1 though went into the fourth round clash battered and bruised and, perhaps understandably, could only manage two sets (5-7, 1-6) against the Spanish powerhouse.
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And such is the impact Draper is having, Alcaraz left his fallen foe an emotional message as he exited the court and headed to the quarter-finals.
The four-time Grand Slam champion penned on one of the cameras - as has become tradition: "You will be where you deserved.
"Get well soon, Jack."
And he followed that by drawing a frowning face.
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Draper lasting two sets seemed to be an achievement in itself for the Brit who had come through three gruelling five-set matches to be there.
Mariano Navone, Thanasi Kokkinakis and Aleksandar Vukic had all given him plenty of work, all after an injury disrupted off-season too.
His third round clash with Vukic had finished at around 1am, meaning he didn't actually leave the site until almost 2:30am after his post-match commitments.
And it was immediately clear after barely 24 hours of rest he wasn't going to be in the best shape to face someone of the calibre Alcaraz has to offer.
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"After how much I have played, I didn't pull up amazingly well," said Draper.
"I was really, really sore after I played my last match because I have been managing this hip thing," Draper added.
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"I wasn't expecting to come this far in all honesty. With all the hours I have played, it has been a bit too much on my body."
"It was not ideal to end this way," continued Draper.
"From the third game, I felt I had multiple areas that were really in pain - especially the hip."
Asked if he considered not playing at all, he remarked: "We were managing it. I didn't feel amazing before my last match, but obviously got out there and it felt OK.
"Maybe it's a little bit of a ticking time bomb, considering I had no preparation and no work for my body."
Alcaraz, meanwhile, repeated his sadness in his post-match press conference.
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"It is not the way which I want to win," he aditted.
"I'm happy to play another quarter-final here in Australia, but I am sad for Jack – he doesn't deserve to be injured.
"I wish him a speedy recovery."
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