After already coming back from afar in the first round against the Argentinian Navone, Jack Draper won again in five sets this Wednesday in the second round of the Australian Open while trailing two sets to one.
Except that this time, it was against the Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis. And when you face a local in Melbourne, the names of birds fly in all directions as the Briton told at a press conference.
“It was incredible. Obviously, the atmosphere was electric. There was obviously a lot of insults from the crowd between serves, from the baseline and all that kind of stuff. I think sometimes you don't want to piss them off or reciprocate. But to be honest, it gave me energy. There were times when I was depressed and then I came out of a tough match. And I felt it a little. It gave me energy by giving back a little. It's just a bit of fun. Obviously, between serves, there are things like whistling, talking… It's fun, but when you're about to serve, it's really difficult. It's obvious that some of the things they say aren't easy to deal with. But I have thick skin. I think it was the worst experience of my life on a tennis court. People obviously say the Davis Cup in Argentina or something like that when they're whistling and laughing between serves but I think it was fun to take part in, to be honest. »
Published on Wednesday January 15, 2025 at 8:50 p.m.
