Draper loses to Ruud in absorbing Madrid final

British number one Jack Draper missed his chance for a first ATP Tour clay-court title. He lost to Casper Ruud in the Madrid Open final.

Draper, 23, was defeated 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 in Spain. He started strong and broke early in the first set. However, Ruud fought back from being down 5-3 to win the opener.

After an emotional moment on his chair, Draper leveled the match. This set up a decisive final set for the title. Unfortunately, Draper's serve faced pressure from Ruud.

Ruud broke Draper at 3-2 and served out to win his first ATP Masters title.

"This sport is brutal, but I will keep trying," said Draper. He believes this loss will help him improve. "I felt like his level maintained while mine dipped a bit."

Despite losing, Draper had an impressive two weeks leading up to the French Open later this month. Before this tournament, he had never gone past the quarter-finals of a clay event.

On Monday, he will reach a career-high ranking of fifth in the world. Ruud praised Draper's performance: "Jack has been playing so well all year."

Draper's performances in Madrid showed he is a serious contender on all surfaces. Andy Murray previously stated that Draper could become world number one.

Draper won his first ATP title on grass at Stuttgart last year and became British number one. Since then, he has made significant progress.

He overcame physical issues early in his career and achieved three five-set victories at the Australian Open in January. This boosted his confidence greatly.

He reached the Doha final next and won his first Masters title at Indian Wells shortly after that. In Madrid, he felt confident about thriving on clay due to its altitude.

Draper moved through five matches without dropping a set during the tournament. His serving and powerful forehand helped him succeed against opponents.

Facing Ruud was always going to be challenging for him. The world number 15 is among the best clay-courters today and proved it with a strong performance against Draper.

Ruud's victory relied on winning 81% of points on his first serve and showing great physicality throughout the match.

"There are no holes in Jack's game," said Ruud after winning. He believes Draper will become increasingly difficult to play against on clay and sees great potential for him ahead.