Linking or repetition

Often when Draper comes back he’s already good, isn’t he?

Yes, I do. His tennis is even more based on his physicality, his ability to stay in the rally, and his grind, but it’s often already at a very good level. And it’s really that tenacity that favors him in his match-up against Nakashima, in my opinion. The American still doesn’t, for me, manage to keep his best level over an entire match when his opponent drags him into a real physical battle. A “shake-off-the-rust” set and a win in 3 for Draper wouldn’t surprise me at all.

On Nakashima’s side, I’m trying to get to know him better. He’s more creative than I thought, and he’s always a pain to play against. He loses to a very high-level guy on Saturday, and now he’s nicely tuned up for his second pre-Wimbledon tournament.

Of course Draper is tempting for me here, but I don’t know what his ambition is. He delayed his comeback so much that maybe he’s turning up like, ‘Okay, I’m ready, I’m going to smash everything from now on,’ and he’s done everything to protect himself and reduce the risk of another injury. Or maybe he’s just testing himself before Wim without pushing too hard? I don’t think so… If you go, you go all in, right? Not for everyone, and it depends on the injury, but for him, I think yes.