Draper wilts in Miami heat

JACK DRAPER required urgent medical attention after dramatically collapsing on court during his full ATP Tour debut at the Miami Open. The 19-year-old Briton, who had been struggling with the stifling heat and humidity, fell to the floor after losing the first set of his opening round 7-5 against Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin. Draper had already had his pulse checked during a lengthy delay at 5-6, despite having competed on even terms with a more experienced opponent. Having been attended to by tournament staff he was able to sit up and then leave the court unaided. ‘I have gone through a stage when I haven’t been able to play much tennis,’ said Draper, who had Covid in January. ‘I tripped because I was starting to feel dizzy. The conditions got on top of me. Physically I still need to improve, my match fitness is not at its best.’ Jo Konta, who is reunited this week with former coach Dmitri Zavialoff, later scored only her second win of the season, defeating Poland’s Magda Linette 6-4, 7-5 to make the third round. Konta will not play for GB in the BJK Cup against Mexico next month to protect her knee in the transition from hard to clay courts. Canadian Vasek Pospisil apologised for his behaviour after an on-court meltdown in which he called ATP Tour chairman Andrea Gaudenzi a ‘f***ing ****hole’. Pospisil had clashed with Gaudenzi at a player meeting the night before his defeat on Wednesday, which he said had left him ‘unnerved’.