Jack Draper’s return to competition ended in distress in Montreal, where the scale of his latest setback became impossible to ignore.

After a difficult year marked by an ongoing bone bruising issue in his arm, the former British No 1 had spoken confidently about making his comeback at the Canadian Open. For a set and a half, there were signs that he might be finding his rhythm. He recovered to take the second set against France’s Terence Atmane in his opening match, a performance that briefly suggested progress for the 2025 Indian Wells Masters champion.

But the third set quickly told a different story. Draper’s service speeds fell away and his body language made clear that something was wrong. At the change of ends with Atmane leading 4-1, the emotion that had been building throughout the match finally spilled over, and Draper broke down in tears.

The collapse reflected the frustration of a player who has tried repeatedly to manage an injury that has resisted every solution. He has undergone several medical tests, tried a range of remedies and even experimented with new strings and possibly a new racket in recent weeks. None of it has yet brought relief.

By the time the match ended in a 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 defeat, the scoreline felt secondary to the bigger concern surrounding Draper’s future. The sight of him crying uncontrollably in his chair was a stark reminder of how much he has already invested simply to get back on court.

“This is pretty emotional. He’s bent over and literally erupting with emotion here. It’s very, very upsetting to see,” said former British No 1 Annabel Croft. “I can only assume that the arm is hurting.

“He couldn’t hold it in and he let it all out. You just wonder what is going through his mind for all that emotion to be there.

“I think we both felt that it was to do with this horrible injury that might have reared its ugly head again, and the knowledge of what it’s taken for him to get out on court again.

“He actually played a very decent second set and it was looking fairly positive, but then there was this massive drop-off of pace on that serve.

“And it was very obvious very quickly that he was not going after big serves, he was rolling them in. He hasn’t really hit a serve since, and hasn’t really gone after any too many ground strokes either.”

Draper has a wild card for next week’s Cincinnati Masters and was also expected to receive one for the US Open, but there are now major doubts over whether he will play again in 2027 if this problem can only be addressed by a long spell away from the tour.

Alex Eala’s rise on the WTA Tour moved into a new phase with her first title at the Washington Open.

The breakthrough had been building for some time. Eala had already collected two WTA 125 Challenger titles, but her run in Washington offered a more forceful statement that she can compete with the best on the sport’s biggest stages.

Her path to the trophy was especially impressive. In the WTA 500 event, Eala defeated Jessica Pegula in the final and also beat Elina Svitolina, Naomi Osaka, Leylah Fernandez, and Qinwen Zheng in the United States capital. It was a title run built on major wins and sustained quality from start to finish.

That success has already pushed her to world No 20 in the WTA rankings, and there is scope for that position to climb further during the North American hardcourt swing. She is defending only 70 ranking points before the end of the US Open, which gives her a strong platform to keep adding points if her current level continues.

Eala has drawn praise from several prominent figures, including Rafael Nadal, and her coach, Joan Bosch, has now added his own voice. As reported by Dyan Castillejo on Instagram, Bosch said: “I can tell you that I’m super happy because this was the goal of the year. She could do it, she deserves it.

“She came back from yesterday’s tough match,” he added. “ Jessica Pegula was playing amazing. Alex is a very good champion and she deserves this win.”

Bosch has been part of Eala’s journey since her time at the Rafael Nadal Academy. His background includes close work with Nadal there, seven years alongside former world No 1 Carlos Moya, and earlier coaching experience with Jaume Munar before he became established on the ATP Tour.

Eala’s recent form suggests this may only be the beginning. In the last three months, she reached the fourth round of Wimbledon, won the Birmingham Open, lifted the Washington Open trophy, and made the semi finals of the Berlin Open. If she carries that momentum into the US Open, she will arrive with real belief.

Carlos Alcaraz is nearing his return to competition at the Cincinnati Open, and the ATP Tour has handed him a useful advantage before he even plays a match.

The Spaniard has been out since suffering a wrist injury at the Barcelona Open in April. That setback forced him to miss Roland Garros, Wimbledon and three Masters events. He has since entered both the Cincinnati Open and the US Open, and recent social media footage has shown him hitting balls with real power as his comeback draws closer.

Alcaraz had slipped to world No 3 after Alexander Zverev’s victory at Roland Garros and Alcaraz’s own final appearance at Wimbledon. Even so, he has now climbed back to world No 2 without competing in recent days.

The reason is a scheduling change. The Canadian Open has been moved up by a week, which means Zverev has lost the 360 points he collected from the 2025 event. Alcaraz did not play the Canadian Open last year, so he has not had any points to defend there and has risen in the rankings without stepping onto court.

At the moment, Jannik Sinner leads the ATP Tour top three on 13,450 points, with Alcaraz on 8160 and Zverev on 8090. The gap between Alcaraz and Zverev is only 70 points, and Zverev is likely to make up some of that during the Canadian Open. But it will not come in time to change the Cincinnati seedings.

That is the key detail for Alcaraz. Because the Cincinnati cut-off comes before the Canadian Open finishes, he will remain the second seed in Cincinnati. That should place him on the opposite side of the draw from Sinner and keep the world No 1 out of his path until the final, at the earliest.

It is a significant lift for Alcaraz as he prepares for his first tournament in five months. He is also defending the full 1000 points from his 2025 Cincinnati title, so a strong run will be essential if he wants to stay at world No 2.