Wins for Jack Draper and Andy Murray as Brits prepare for Australian Open

Draper powered past Tommy Paul to reach the semi-finals of the Adelaide International for the second year in a row.

Draper dropped just five games in an impressive 6-1 6-4 victory over top seed Paul, who he also beat at the same venue last year, to set up a last-four clash with Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik.

Draper had to save match points against Miomic Kecmanovic in the second round on Wednesday, and he said: “I’m really impressed with the way I came out today.

“I knew it was going to be difficult, I played a really long match yesterday. I’m really proud of the work I’m doing, showing my physicality on court. Each time I play I’m proving myself to be a better player than I thought I was so a really good match against a great player like Tommy.”

It is also an encouraging win because Draper, who lost to Kwon Soon-woo in the last four a year ago, could meet Paul in the second round of the Australian Open.

Meanwhile, Andy Murray secured a morale-boosting first win of the season against Dominic Thiem at the Kooyong Classic.

While only in an exhibition event, the 6-4 6-2 victory will be very welcome for Murray, who lost to Grigor Dimitrov in the first round of the Brisbane International last week before falling to defeat against Marin Cilic at Kooyong on Wednesday.

The Scot will take on 30th-seeded Argentinian Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the first round of the Australian Open.

There was less good news, though, for Cameron Norrie, who sparked fears ahead of the year’s first grand slam by pulling out of his quarter-final at the ASB Classic with a wrist injury.

The British number one had been due to face Chilean Alejandro Tabilo in Auckland, the city where he grew up, but withdrew just before the scheduled start.

Wrist issues can be notoriously problematic for tennis players but the word from Norrie’s camp was it was a precautionary decision prior to travelling to Melbourne, where he has been drawn to face Peru’s Juan Pablo Varillas in the first round.

Norrie reached the final in Auckland 12 months ago and will drop outside the top 20 for the first time since October 2021 on Monday.

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