Home Sports British No 1 Jack Draper DESTROYS his racquet in a rage at Australian Open, as fans say he’s ‘lost it’ after ANOTHER flare-up with ‘drunk’ Aussie crowd

British No 1 Jack Draper DESTROYS his racquet in a rage at Australian Open, as fans say he’s ‘lost it’ after ANOTHER flare-up with ‘drunk’ Aussie crowd

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Jack Draper furiously smashed his racket at the end of the third set against Aleksandar Vukic

British number one Jack Draper smashed his racquet in fury during the third set of their third round match at the Australian Open.

Draper had led by a set against Australian hope Aleksandar Vukic, but the home favorite tied the match by taking the second.

Frustration became evident for Draper when Vukic approached set point in the third, and the British star was unable to return a serve.

Draper was immediately seen destroying his racquet, prompting the umpire to give the umpire a judicial infraction.

Vukic took the set, leaving Draper facing the prospect of needing to win in five sets for the third straight match if he wants to reach the fourth round.

Draper was booed by the Australian crowd after the incident, and the 23-year-old heard an insult as he sat down at the end of the set.

Jack Draper furiously smashed his racket at the end of the third set against Aleksandar Vukic

The British number 1 showed his frustration after losing the set point against the Australian player

The British number 1 showed his frustration after losing the set point against the Australian player

Draper received a code violation for the racket hit and lost the set.

Draper received a code violation for the racket hit and lost the set.

Draper was seen sarcastically applauding the crowd and gave a thumbs up to fans at Margaret Court Arena.

Fans claimed Draper had “lost control” with their frustrations boiling over against the heavily backed Australian player at Melbourne Park.

Some fans claimed that Draper had attempted to disrupt Vukic’s attempts to serve the set by taking his time replacing his racquet.

‘Jack Draper has completely lost his mind here, breaking his racket. “He needs to stay here or his #AusOpen journey will end this year,” one fan wrote.

“The way Jack Draper just destroyed his racket…OMG,” said a second.

‘That really should be a point penalty for the code violation for racket abuse and loss of time. Should double for Draper. But oh my God, Vukic is playing well,” added another.

‘Jack Draper makes Aleksandar Vukic wait a while before he can play his set point. “Draper smashed his racket and was in no hurry to get a new one,” said a third.

Draper fought back in the competition by taking the fourth set in a tiebreaker to continue his marathon start to the Grand Slam.

Draper was seen giving a thumbs up to the crowd after being heckled following the incident.

Draper was seen giving a thumbs up to the crowd after being heckled following the incident.

The British star then sarcastically applauded the hosts at the Margaret Court Arena.

The British star then sarcastically applauded the hosts at the Margaret Court Arena.

Draper bids to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open for the first time

Draper bids to reach the fourth round of the Australian Open for the first time

The 23-year-old had already produced his best performance at the Australian Open by reaching the third round, despite coming into the tournament with no matches due to an injury concern in the build-up.

Draper came into the season off the back of her best Grand Slam performance to date, reaching the semi-finals of the US Open last year.

Vukic has enjoyed the best Grand Slam run of his career to date, as the Australian reached the second round in Melbourne and twice at Wimbledon.

The winner will face four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz in the fourth round.

Draper is the latest star to face backlash from the Australian public when he took on a local hopeful this year.

American Danielle Collins slapped her behind and blew kisses to booers after her victory over Australia’s Destanee Aiava.

He later boasted of his ‘huge salary of $180,000 (£147,000)’ when he faced the crowd in an on-court interview.

Collins, who reached the final of the Australian Open in 2022, has already pocketed £147,000 ($180,000/AU$290,000) in prize money by reaching the third round.

Danielle Collins slapped the crowd on the butt after beating an Australian on Thursday.

Danielle Collins slapped the crowd on the butt after beating an Australian on Thursday.

The American boasted to the fans about having received a

The American boasted to fans that he had received a “big payday” upon reaching the third round.

Collins also blew kisses to her fans and said she would use her salary for a luxury vacation.

Collins also blew kisses to her fans and said she would use her salary for a luxury vacation.

The tournament’s tenth seed doubled down on her on-court comments in her press conference.

Collins said, ‘Well, I’m going to be here for two hours, putting up with all these people, might as well take the bigger paycheck, right?’

“I was very happy to do that and one of the best things about being a professional athlete is that the people who don’t like you and hate you actually pay your bills.”

“It’s a cool concept and obviously my career isn’t going to last forever and every day when I have that kind of thing going on, I remind myself that they’re paying my bills.”

‘Every person who bought a ticket and came here to interrupt me can do what they do. Everything will go to the bottom Danielle Collins. So, yeah, go ahead, I love it.

When asked about her vacation plans, Collins expressed her desire to have a luxury trip to a particular location.

‘My friends and I love five-star holidays, so I can guarantee that the next check will go towards a five-star trip, hopefully to the Bahamas.

‘We like boats. Big ships. We like yachts. Yes, we will post about it and tell you how it goes.”

Novak Djokovic, the ten-time men’s champion, dealt with the boos differently after his victory on Friday.

Novak Djokovic hilariously dealt with an interlocutor after his victory over Tomas Machac

Novak Djokovic hilariously dealt with an interlocutor after his victory over Tomas Machac

Djokovic's comments left the interviewer and those present at the Rod Laver Arena in stitches.

Djokovic’s comments left the interviewer and those present at the Rod Laver Arena in stitches.

As he began to talk about his game, a largely incoherent interlocutor shouted something in the Serb’s direction.

Instead of biting the barb, Djokovic calmly replied: “Sorry mate, I have a wife.” We can have a drink though… maybe you’ve already had a few.’

This left the interviewer, former world No. 9 Andrea Petkovic, on edge, before Djokovic added: “He and I were talking back and forth for quite a while.”

When jokingly asked if he would like to go on a date with the interlocutor, Djokovic continued to entertain the audience.

“Listen, I’m happy to have a drink with him,” he added. “Now that the game is over we can reflect very well on what we said to each other during the game.”

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