Draper matches Boulter as Britons reach semi-finals

British men’s tennis number one Jack Draper matched Katie Boulter by reaching the semi-finals of a tour-level event on another encouraging day for the nation’s leading players.

Draper, 22, moved into the fifth semi-final of his breakout year with a 6-3 3-6 6-1 win against Czech Tomas Machac at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna.

Earlier on Friday, British women’s number one Boulter dropped only three games as she beat former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu to reach the last four of the Pan Pacific Open.

Boulter, 28, won 6-2 6-1 in one hour and three minutes in Tokyo.

There was further good news for British tennis fans when Neal Skupski secured a place in the Vienna doubles final alongside New Zealand’s Michael Venus.

Skupski and Venus, aiming for their third title of the season, won 7-6 (9-7) 6-4 against Argentine pair Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni.

Draper and Boulter have each produced career-best seasons in terms of winning tour titles and climbing the world rankings.

Draper, having become more physically robust this year, also reached the semi-finals of a Grand Slam for the first time at the US Open in September.

A demanding win over Machac – who world number 18 Draper beat in the fourth round of his New York run – was another example of the improvements he has made.

Using his first serve effectively, covering the court to outlast Machac in baseline rallies, and adding variety to plant doubt in his opponent’s mind were the keys to an impressive opening set.

He also needed to show the gritty side of his game.

Fending off six break points for 27th-ranked Machac kept Draper in command and, although he succumbed to a seventh which decisively turned the second set, the British left-hander regrouped to dominate the decider.

“I felt it was more of a mental battle,” said Draper.

“My energy dropped a little bit and my decision-making became up and down.

“At this level you can’t get away with spending too long in that situation. I’m proud how I dug in.”

Despite raising concerns recently about the demands placed on leading players, the seventh seed has looked sharp at the ATP 500 event.

Draper will face German top seed Alexander Zverev or Italian sixth seed Lorenzo Musetti in Saturday’s semi-finals.

“I’m improving all the time and my results are showing that,” added Draper, who is set to rise to another new career-high ranking whatever happens over the weekend.

“I’m working hard to become more consistent. It’s showing.”

In a similar way to Draper, Boulter is reaping the rewards of stying healthy for the full season.

Having reached a career-best ranking of 27th earlier this year, she is poised to move back into the world’s top 30 on the back of her run in Tokyo.

Boulter has described a year where she has won two titles – including the biggest of her career at a WTA 500 in San Diego – as a “whirlwind”.

The positivity and confidence she has gained this year continues to show.

The world number 33 broke Canadian Andreescu’s serve five times, including in her opening service game, to reach her third semi-final of the season.

“I played really well today,” Boulter said. “I wanted to come out, play freely and enjoy it.

“This year has seen so many good things, a couple of things to learn from, but ultimately I’ve been putting the work in.”

Boulter will face American wildcard Sofia Kenin, who beat Russian third seed Daria Kasatkina 6-3 6-4 in the quarter-finals, on Saturday for a place in the final.