In August, Draper and Raducanu clashed in a mixed doubles match at the US Open, as the British ATP player and Jessica Pegula defeated British WTA star and Carlos Alcaraz 3-5 5-3 10-8. After the match, the two British stars appeared to exchange an icy handshake – leading to some negative speculation about the pair’s relationship.
Two months after their US Open match, Draper and Raducanu agreed to start 2026 by representing Great Britain at the United Cup. It will be a debut United Cup appearance for both.
Ahead of the United Cup, Draper joined the United Cup and answered a few quick questions. When asked to name his favorite British player, he quickly dropped Raducanu’s name.
Draper vigorously defended Raducanu
After Raducanu suffered a first-round exit at the 2024 US Open and received enormous criticism, Draper publicly supported the 23-year-old by explaining that she was put in a very uncomfortable and challenging situation.
“I think it’s important that people give her time to travel and improve physically and she has to work on it for years to get back to that point. There’s no doubt that it was extremely difficult for Emma because she had done her A-levels and had just come out of school. Suddenly she came here and she had a dream run and won. I think the expectations on her after that were enormous,” the ATP world number 10 said at the time.
Draper will meet Japan’s Shintaro Mochizuki on January 4, while Raducua will clash against Naomi Osaka.
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