Jack Draper will compete in his second ATP Tour final at the Adelaide International thanks to a stellar two-set win over eighth seed Alexander Bublik in Friday's semi-final.
In a contest rife with ingenuity and trick shots, the British number four produced a clean showing and capitalised on frequent serving errors from his Kazakh foe to prevail 7-6[2] 6-4 in just over an hour and a half to move within one match of his maiden top-level title.
"Very proud of myself, it was a tough match today against a guy who's very unpredictable. I'm very glad with the way I'm playing. He's great for tennis, it's really fun to play him. It was a really good match," Draper said on the court.
"It would mean a lot to me [to win the title]. I made the semi-finals here last year and I've gone one further this year. I'm really hoping I can over the line tomorrow. I'm going to need all the support I can get."
Draper had already got one over Bublik during their inaugural meeting at the 2021 Queen's Club Championships and quickly took Friday's semi-final by the scruff of the neck, breaking Bublik in his opening service game.
Jack Draper defeats Alexander Bublik 7-6 6-4 to reach the ATP Adelaide final in his first tournament of the year! 🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/g5jvP69knA
— Sky Sports Tennis (@SkySportsTennis) January 12, 2024
However, that break represented one of four successive losses of serve for both men as early nerves kicked in, although Bublik snapped that streak with a hold for 3-3 and saved a set point to force a tie-breaker.
Despite falling 2-1 down, Draper found a ruthless edge to win six points on the trot and was gifted the first break of the second set by Bublik, who was the master of his own downfall with a trio of double faults in the fifth game.
The eighth seed could not muster up a response to that calamity, as Draper brought up three match points with his eighth ace of the day, and Bublik would fire a cross-court forehand wide of the tramlines on the Brit's first such point to close an entertaining contest.
Draper - whose first ATP Tour final in November's Sofia Open ended in defeat to Adrian Mannarino - will battle for glory on Saturday against Czech seventh seed and fellow 22-year-old Jiri Lehecka, who eased past Sebastian Korda 6-2 6-1 in the day's first semi-final.
As is the case with Draper, Lehecka is also gunning for his first ATP Tour title in Adelaide, having been beaten by Sebastian Baez in his inaugural top-level final at August's Winston-Salem Open.
Ben Knapton
