By Tony Fairbairn
- Jack Draper [13] def Taylor Fritz [3] 7-5 6-4
- Draper v Ben Shelton [11] | H2H: First Meeting
INDIAN WELLS, USA – Jack Draper produced an efficient performance to knock out Taylor Fritz to reach his first Indian Wells quarter-final and now faces Ben Shelton.
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Jack Draper [13] def Taylor Fritz [3] 7-5 6-4
Jack Draper is into his first Indian Wells quarter-final after a clinical display against Taylor Fritz. The British number one broke on three occasions as he was comfortable for most of his straight sets win over an under-par American number one. In the opening stages both players went toe-to-toe from the baseline with Draper winning the majority of the long rallies with the forehand doing the damage.
Meanwhile Fritz was proactive and aggressive as he approached the net to finish off the points quickly. Neither player faltered on serve throughout the set as both players did damage on the forehand side with Fritz being frustrated that his aggressive starts on return were not regularly rewarded.
That was a big sign of Draper’s current confidence and form on serve as Fritz’s mood wasn’t about to improve any time soon with the Brit threatening on return towards the end of the set. Some incredible defence and slice allowed Draper to convert his first break point to take a 6-5 lead. There were no problems for the Brit as he comfortably wrapped up the opening set in 39 minutes.
An efficient Draper wasn’t about to stop there as he continued the momentum into the second set. A wave of consistent pressure was created from Draper as the British number one produced winner after winner to take a double break lead at 3-0 with Fritz continuing to be unhappy at his level. There was a mini-blip along the way as Fritz increased the intensity and broke Draper when the Brit was serving for the match in the eighth game.
However, at the second time of asking Draper closed out the match to seal the win and reach his maiden quarter-final in California.
Jack Draper [13] v Ben Shelton [11] H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Jack Draper [13] v Ben Shelton [11] | H2H: First Meeting |
| Indian Wells 2025 | Indian Wells, USA |
| Hard (O) | Prize Money: $202,000 |
| Fourth on Stadium Two (Not before midnight GMT) | Sky/Now TV <- Subscription Required |
Draper now aims for a place in the semi-finals at Indian Wells when he takes on big-serving Ben Shelton.
Tale of the Tape – Key Stats (Last 52 Weeks)
| H2H: | Jack Draper (WR 14) | Ben Shelton (WR 12) |
| Tournament Previous Best | R4 (2023) | R4 (2024) |
| 1st Serve % | 60.2 | 67.9 |
| Service Games Won % | 84.6 | 89.9 |
| Break Points Saved % | 61 | 73.5 |
| 2nd Serve Return Points Won % | 51.2 | 45.3 |
| Break Points Converted % | 40.6 | 35.6 |
Draper’s clinical efficiency on return will have its toughest test of the tournament as he takes on the accurate and powerful serving of Shelton.
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Playing Styles and Prediction
It’s been a good start to the season for Shelton who started the season by reaching his second Grand Slam semi-final of his career at the Australian Open. The American is yet to drop a set this week at Indian Wells and will fancy his chances of creating more noise on home territory as he has a place in the world’s top ten in his sights.
Draper will once again look to be aggressive on the forehand as he will test Shelton’s skillset from the baseline. Meanwhile Shelton will use his serve to force errors from Draper, using the forehand in order to approach the net. This will be an entertaining match between two of the brightest prospects in the game with very little to separate them. The Brit’s route to the last eight has been more impressive and will therefore begin this match as slight favourite.
Prediction: Draper in three sets.
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