Jack Draper will face Carlos Alcaraz in the fourth round of the Australian Open after surviving a blistering performance from home favorite Aleksander Vukic.
For the second time in three days, Draper trailed an Australian by two sets to one in a hostile arena baying for British blood. His victory against Thanasi Kokkinakis, with his ear to the booing crowd, was spectacular enough, but this was something else.
There was a smashed racket and a deep dropped catch and, in the end, a 6-4, 2-6, 5-7, 7-6, 7-6 victory. There was an avalanche of winners from Vukic and Draper's finger, reminding the crowd that he was still here.
Vukic played the game of his life, completely mocking his ranking as the 68th best player in the world. Tennis is like that; There are players who can spend years on the professional circuit making a good living, reaching the occasional quarterfinal in a minor event and occasionally winning a round or two at a Slam. But sleeping inside them is a perfect performance and they wake up every day and think, 'Maybe this is the day?'
For Vukic, this day was that day. And yet, somehow, it wasn't enough.
Both players arrived having played two five-set matches. However, Vukic's two were energetic, so Draper came in having spent exactly two hours more on the court than his opponent.
Jack Draper has booked his place in the fourth round of the Australian Open with another five-set thriller.
The British number 1 defended himself several times against his Australian rival on Friday.
Aleksandar Vukic had the match within his reach at times, but Draper's fighting spirit won
There was some booing when Draper left. He was mobbed by the crowd in his second-round win against Thanasi Kokkinakis at the John Cain Arena and, although he didn't tell them to kiss his ass like American Danielle Collins did on Thursday (that was comfortably the moment of the tournament so far for the road), he gave the best he received.
This time the crowd, initially, was not such a big factor. John Cain Arena, where that game was held, is a happy home for the drunk and the boorish. The sold-out Margaret Court Arena is more of a preserve for middle-aged tennis fans.
The pattern of the match was similar to the match with Kokkinakis. Vukic was serving well and teeing off forehand and generally looking like Australian rules football. As the match progressed he also made smart use of the drop shot.
Given his level of play, it is a mystery how this was his first visit to the third round of a Grand Slam.
Draper had to weather the storm and then unleashed lightning of his own: a pair of searing forehands down the line as Vukic served to stay in the set. Those rockets raised the set point and he delivered the final blow with a drop shot that couldn't have been better hidden if he were wearing a false nose.
That turned out to be only a brief cessation of Vukic's attack as he swept the second set.
It was a frenetic match and six pauses at the beginning of the third set allowed everyone to catch their breath. The play of the match ended with Draper stretching for a backhand volley and wagging a finger in the air in celebration.
Vukic was playing well above his usual level. Surely at some point there would be some regression to the mean?
Local favorite Vukic played well above his level in the second and third sets.
Draper cut an increasingly frustrated figure at Margaret Court Arena on Friday night.
After conceding the third set, Draper took it out on his racket and smashed it into pieces on the court.
Instead, it was Draper who broke down, surprisingly. At 5-5, 30-30, he committed two double faults in a row, giving Vukic the opportunity to serve for the set. Draper had two break points at 15-40 but lost three points in a row; the third was too much and Draper indulged in blue-on-blue violence, smashing his ultramarine racket on the blue court.
That got the crowd excited, boos echoing through the arena as Draper dug into his bag for a replacement. Vukic sealed the set with an ace and when Draper sat down he sarcastically applauded the crowd, urging them to turn up the volume: 'Is that all you've got?' You call that booing? was the implication. Here we were getting a little closer to Collins levels.
Draper was furious and wisely walked off the court, perhaps looking for a dog to kick.
As against Kokkinakis, Draper found himself two sets to one down. Can he get the kangaroo out of the akubra for the second time in three days?
But it was Vukic who made the magic with one of the points of the tournament. In full stretch to the backhand he sent a cut sliding and sliding down the line; Draper did well to cross the court for a sure winner; Vukic chased him and hit the other line with a right hand like a tracer missile. It was a once-in-a-lifetime shot and Draper could only let out a sad laugh and applaud.
However, the British player now showed noticeably more energy. The noise of the racket and the interaction with the crowd cleared the air and expelled some emotions that had clearly been building up.
And with that his game improved. He still wasn't in control, but there were fewer passive passes and more “good misses” where he tried to risk the ball but overcooked it.
There wasn't much wrong with his game. His opponent had 50 winners and 25 unforced errors midway through the fourth set – ridiculous numbers.
But as the match progressed, Draper showed more and more energy and spirit as he slowly regained control.
A partisan Australian crowd gave Draper another opponent to face and Draper was willing to mock them.
At 2-2, Vukic went 0-40 up on Draper's serve; A break here would have been critical, it was felt, but Draper made some clutch that served to hold on.
In the next game, Draper hit a return off the frame of his racquet 60 feet in the air. Like a man deep in the nearby MCG pitch, he got under the skier but dropped a catch. Next time, Jack, try putting down the racket.
With Vukic serving at 5-6, Draper had two set points. On the second, Vukic charged the net and fired a half-volley from his laces into the other side of the net. It was a barely believable catch, the kind of shot that might have made Draper wonder if it just wasn't his day.
The tiebreaker was played at a surprisingly high level, but Draper won it by consistently attacking the net.
Draper took a 3-1 lead in the deciding set and had four break points that were effectively match points.
But Vukic saved them all and had the wind in his favor again, falling back and holding for 4-3 with a Pete Sampras-style dunk. Then there was a nod to Rafa Nadal as he ran out of his chair after the next change.
Both men were playing out of their minds now and this was an incredible watch.
After three five-set matches, Draper said immediately after the tie that he hoped to bounce back.
Draper will have to be at his best when he faces his next opponent: four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz.
The drama was endless. With Draper serving 5-6, some spectators began whistling as he prepared to serve. A hateful practice that made referee Louise Azemar Engzell spit feathers. “Please, can we respect the players they've been playing with for three hours and 42 minutes?” said the Swede, who by the way had a phenomenal game.
On the next point, Draper won an incredible rat-a-tat net exchange and pounded his chest toward the crowd like King Kong.
Inevitably and exhaustingly, it took a 10-point tiebreaker in the deciding set to separate them. 2-0 Draper became 3-3 became 7-7. In the decisive moment, Draper struck, with a drop shot earning two match points and a huge serve sealing the score, 10-8.
We're only 17 days in, but this game will be surpassed as the game of the year.