Jack Draper continues inspired Sofia Open run to reach semi-finals and close in on maiden ATP Tour final

Updated 09/11/2023 at 23:42 GMT

Jack Draper took a step closer to his first ATP Tour final with a last-eight victory against Turkish player Cem Ilkel. The Briton put on another dominant display, one day after defeating top seed Lorenzo Musetti, and crusied to a 6-2 6-2 triumph to secure his spot in the last four. Draper has now recorded eight wins on the bounce and will play German Jan-Lennard Struff for a spot in the final.

Draper advances to quarter-finals in Sofia after overcoming top seed Musetti

Jack Draper's dominant run at the Sofia Open continued with a 6-2 6-2 victory over Turkish wild card Cem Ilkel to reach the semi-finals.

The 21-year-old quickly took a 3-0 lead in the first set and from there was able to comfortably ease to victory.

He was strong on his serve, nailing three aces during the opener, and was never under threat as he dictated play without facing a single break point.

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By the time the second set rolled around, Draper was in unstoppable form.

Another three aces and four converted break points helped him to close out the match with minimal reply from Ilkel, as he edged closer to his first tour-level final.

Draper will play German third seed Jan-Lennard Struff for a spot in the final.

The Briton is in red-hot form after winning his fifth ATP Challenger Tour title in Italy last week and has now registered eight consecutive wins.

After beating Maximilian Marterer in the first round, Draper rallied past top seed Lorenzo Musetti excellently to reach the last eight.

In the earlier match on Thursday, third seed Struff overcame Fabian Marozsan 7-6(3) 4-6 6-4 to become the first player in the semi-finals.

The second semi-final will see Pavel Kotov take on Adrian Mannarino.

Mannarino battled from set down to beat Sebastian Ofner 6-7(7) 6-4 6-3, while Kotov saw off Marton Fucsovics 6-3 7-6(3).

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