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In early December, world number 10 Draper also pulled out<\/a> of the Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) grand final in London, citing his frustration at not being “quite ready”. <\/p>\n Draper first felt discomfort in his upper left serving arm during the clay-court season in the spring, and while he attempted to return at the US Open in late August – playing alongside Jessica Pegula in the mixed doubles and winning his first-round match in the singles – he withdrew from the tournament because of the discomfort. <\/p>\n He continued: “Obviously, with Australia being a Grand Slam, it’s one of the biggest tournaments in our sport. <\/p>\n “However, I’ve had this injury for a long time. I’m at the very, very end stages of the [recovery] process and to step back on court into best-of-five-set tennis so soon just doesn’t seem like a smart decision right now for me and my tennis.<\/p>\n “I’ve obviously been through a fair amount of setbacks but by far, this one has been the most difficult, the most challenging, the most complex one that I’ve had.”<\/p>\n Draper performed strongly in the first part of the year, reaching a career-high world ranking of four in June and also securing a maiden Masters 1000 title<\/a> with victory over Denmark’s Holger Rune in the Indian Wells final in March. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n