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Jack Draper survived another five-set epic to book an Australian Open clash with Carlos Alcaraz in Melbourne.
The British No 1 is through to the fourth round of the Australian Open for the first time in his career and has taken the long road, with all three of his wins going the distance.
The 23-year-old battled from two sets to one down for the third match in a row to beat Australian hopeful Aleksandar Vukic in a match tiebreak, adding to his marathon victory over home favourite Thanasi Kokkinakis.
It sets up a blockbuster clash against third seed Alcaraz, who is bidding to win the Australian Open for the first time and become the youngest man to complete the career grand slam at the age of 21.
The four-time grand slam winner will be fresher than Draper after comfortably easing into the third round, ahead of what is their fourth career meeting.
Here’s everything you need to know.
When will Jack Draper play Carlos Alcaraz?
The match will take place on Sunday 19 January and the start time is still to be confirmed. The order of play will not be released until Saturday, but Draper will likely be given a night match in Melbourne after finishing his win against Vukic after midnight local time on Thursday. That could result in Draper vs Alcaraz being played at around 8am UK time on Sunday morning.
Jack Draper vs Carlos Alcaraz head to head
This will be the fourth career meeting between Draper and Alcaraz. Their last match came at last year’s Queens tournament, with Draper beating Alcaraz on the grass. Before then, they met on the hard courts at Indian Wells but Draper retired with an injury midway through the second set.
2024: Queen’s – Draper won 7-6 6-3
2023: Indian Wells – Alcaraz won 6-2 2-0 ret.
2023: Basel – Alcaraz won 3-6 6-2 7-5
What has Jack Draper said about Carlos Alcaraz?
“I’m just thinking about my recovery and getting off the court to be honest. I don’t want to think about him yet. He’s a special talent, an unbelievable player, someone I have a good friendship with. I think it’s gonna be an incredible match, and hopefully my body pulls up and I can give it my all – and it will be a great contest.
“Obviously [I have] a win, but I think he just came off the French Open and had a bit of time off. I had just won Stuttgart, and the grass is a completely different ball game. We obviously played in Basel. We played in Indian Wells. I was injured there.
“I know what to expect from him. He’s going to come out with a lot of energy, and obviously he’s a special talent, like I’ve said. I need to be aggressive. I need to take my chances. Against the top players you get less and less chances to win games and sets.
“I need to be brave in the way I play, but I’m expecting him to come out and know that I’ve played three five-setters and know that he’s got a battle on his hands, and he’s going to have to play good.”
Where can I watch the Australian Open?
In the UK, the Australian Open will be broadcast live on Eurosport. Subscribers can also stream the action online on the Eurosport website or with the discovery+ app.
The tournament takes place every day from midnight UK time each day on the outside courts and 1am on the show courts, while night sessions will start at 8am.
