Jack Draper vowed to work his way out of his injury woes after ​being forced to retire with a right leg ‌problem midway through his first-round match against ​Tomas Etcheverry at the Barcelona Open ⁠on Monday.

The 24-year-old, who returned to action in February after six months out due to a ‌niggling left arm injury, pulled up while trailing 1-4 in the deciding set ‌of his meeting with Argentine Etcheverry ‌to ⁠cast doubts on his fitness for the ⁠clay season.

“Sad to retire in Barcelona. I’ve tried hard these last months to stay positive and give my all,” ​Draper, who tried ‌to soldier on with taping below his right knee, said in a post on social media.

“It will take time but I will ‌work my way out of this. Thank ​you for all the support throughout this process.”

After an early exit in ⁠Dubai in February, Draper shook off the cobwebs to beat 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic ‌at Indian Wells but his title defence in the Californian desert ended in the quarterfinals against Daniil Medvedev.

The left-hander then suffered another early defeat in Miami and pulled out of Monte Carlo to protect his arm, but ‌hoped to kick-start his campaign in Barcelona ahead of ​the French Open that will begin on May 24.

“I like how he plays, ⁠he’s a great fighter,” Etcheverry said of the former ⁠world number four, who has now slipped to 28th in the rankings.

“Hopefully, he ‌can recover as soon as he can to get back on tour, because the ​tour likes him.”

Published on Apr 14, 2026