Britain’s Jack Draper suffered a straight-sets defeat to French sixth seed Ugo Humbert on Friday evening, officially ending his run at the Lexus Eastbourne Open. Humbert secured the 7-5, 6-3 victory in one hour and 42 minutes to advance to his 12th career ATP Tour final. The loss comes just hours after the unseeded 24-year-old Brit learned he will face world No. 7 Taylor Fritz in a demanding first-round Wimbledon draw.
The semi-final exit marks Draper’s first match defeat since officially adding former world No. 1 Andy Murray to his coaching team. Draper spent the past year rehabilitating a persistent racket arm injury that disrupted his physical conditioning starting at last year’s Madrid Open. His push at Devonshire Park featured multiple straight-sets victories, proving his grass-court fitness before he met the veteran French competitor.
The triumph coincided with Humbert’s 28th birthday. The sixth seed praised his opponent during a post-match on-court interview. “By far it’s the best gift I could have today,” Humbert told the crowd. “It’s nice to see Jack back on court.” Humbert added that he planned to celebrate the evening by watching his native France play Norway in the World Cup.