Jack Draper’s pursuit of a maiden Grand Slam title at his home major of Wimbledon came to an end after losing to Marin Cilic in four sets.
Cilic defeated Draper 6-4, 6-3, 1-6, 6-4 on Centre Court, in what was a vintage display from the former US Open champion.
The Briton, who was the fourth seed at Wimbledon, had the racket taken out of his hands by the big-serving Croatian.
Following his triumph, Cilic will face Jaume Munar in the third round, as he looks to reach the fourth round of a major for the first time since 2022.
For Draper, it’s another early exit at the All England Club, which former finalist Nick Kyrgios thinks is partly down to one mistake he was making in the match.
Nick Kyrgios highlights the mistake Jack Draper was making
When asked on Talksport about Draper’s decision to keep serving to Cilic’s backhand, Kyrgios said: “I think it was wrong.
“But left-handers like to slide that ball T and go wide on the advantage side, and that’s to Cilic’s strength.
“When Jack was under the pump, he went to those serves a little bit too much. That’s just the student of the game in me.
“I haven’t had a coach in six or seven years, so I am always trying to break down what players are doing, and Cilic looked like he executed well and played the bigger points well.
“I’m probably not the best person [to speak to him], but I would probably just say that the execution and the tactics, maybe he could have done them a bit differently.
“But he knows, you don’t get to top five in the world without understanding what you are doing out there.”
Nick Kyrgios says the draw is opening up for Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz
Kyrgios said of Draper: “He’s top five in the world and competing for Grand Slams coming off a semi-final at the US Open last year, but Marin Cilic is a danger.
“He is a floater and a dark horse, and people forget he is a Grand Slam champion. He is one of those guys who actually had a breakthrough when four of the greatest of all time were playing.
“Cilic really remembered what he could do. He is one of the best servers in the world, still, incredible backhand, but Draper just looked a bit out of sorts.
“He came out a little bit flat. Obviously two sets to love down, it’s never easy to come back, but this Wimbledon has been so strange, so many upsets and seeds falling. It looks like the draw is opening up for [Jannik] Sinner and [Carlos] Alcaraz.”
Following Thursday’s play, a record of 36 seeded players across the men’s and women’s draws have been eliminated before the third round.
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