Jack Draper plays 'best match' to beat 'amazing' Taylor Fritz and reach maiden quarter-final at Indian Wells

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British No. 1 Jack Draper felt he displayed his best-ever performance at Indian Wells as he sent No. 3 seed Taylor Fritz packing, setting up a quarter-final clash with Ben Shelton. Draper held his nerve despite a late blip after forging 5-1 ahead in the second set. Meanwhile, Belinda Bencic knocked out Coco Gauff from the tournament in California, continuing her strong return to the court.

Jack Draper of Great Britain celebrates his victory over Taylor Fritz of the United States in the fourth round of the men's singles

Image credit: Getty Images

Jack Draper's strong start to the 2025 campaign continued with a straight sets victory over No. 3 seed Taylor Fritz to reach his first Indian Wells quarter-final.

In a tight first set, it was not until the 11th game that the British No. 1 found a breakthrough on his American opponent's serve - forging 6-5 ahead before sealing the opening set with a hold to 15.

But two immediate breaks in the second set put Draper firmly in the driving seat as he raced into a 5-1 lead. A late wobble threatened to derail the 23-year-old's impressive performance, as Fritz rallied to chalk him back to 5-4, but the Brit finally saw out the elusive hold to set up a last-eight clash with Ben Shelton.

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"It is the best match I have played here so far in the three years I have been here," Draper said after his 7-5 6-4 victory. "There were a few moments here and there in which I was brave, which I spoke to my coach about before the match.

"Taylor is such an amazing player, so to come through in the way I did, I am very proud of that."

Speaking to BBC Sport, Draper added: "It's the first time I think I have played against someone like Taylor and felt like I dominated the match.

"I want to play against the best players in the world so I can show what I'm all about.

"I believe I can beat anyone and play some great tennis. It's just about doing it more and more, which will give me more belief."

The victory, only Draper's third against a top-five opponent in his career, continues an impressive start to the year, after reaching the last 16 of the Australian Open before crashing out to Carlos Alcaraz, while he also fell just short of the Doha title last month after falling to Andrey Rublev in the final.

Elsewhere in California, Alcaraz emphatically ousted Grigor Dimitrov 6-1 6-1, while Daniil Medvedev and Francisco Cerundolo also sealed passage to the quarter-finals.

Meanwhile, Belinda Bencic continued her strong return from maternity leave by downing No. 3 seed Coco Gauff.

The Tokyo Olympics gold medallist picked up the Abu Dhabi trophy in February for her first piece of silverware since becoming a mother, and has enjoyed a strong run of form since returning to the sport.

Her Australian Open run was ended in the last 16 by Gauff, but the Swiss star avenged that defeat with a 3-6 6-3 6-4 win over the American in California, setting up a quarter-final against Melbourne champion Madison Keys.

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"Obviously, this is why you are practising and working hard all your life, so it's super nice to play in this kind of atmosphere," Bencic said in her on-court interview.

"The way you cheered before the match... I had chills and goosebumps and I just put the serve into the court because I was so nervous."

Aryna Sabalenka also secured her route to the last eight, while No. 6 seed Jasmine Paolini crashed out to Liudmila Samsonova - suffering an opening set bagel defeat in just 20 minutes before falling 6-4 in the second.

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