John McEnroe's two-word Jack Draper description says it all as Wimbledon prediction given

John McEnroe has claimed Jack Draper is the fourth favourite to win Wimbledon after growing from a five-foot 14-year-old into a "physical specimen". The three-time Wimbledon champion saw the potential of the tiny teenager at his US tennis academy.

But the British No.1, now a strapping 6 ft 4 in, has seen a spurt in his career over the last 12 months as he reached the US Open semi-finals and won the Indian Wells Masters.

Now 23, he will be seeded No.4 when the draw is made in SW19 this morning and so will avoid top two Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz until the semi-finals.

"I'm very impressed with Jack Draper," said the BBC commentator. "I knew that he had a lot of talent. I didn't realise he was that good an athlete. He's really developed into a force. He is seeded four, he's four in the world so to me, he's the fourth favorite, without a doubt.

"And I think on this surface, he could play against anybody. Sinner's not quite as comfortable on this surface as he is on the other surfaces. With Alcaraz, it would certainly be exciting if those two played. So he's absolutely put himself in the mix which is going to add to the pressure. He doesn't have to deal with those guys until the semis. That's all you can ask for. I think he's getting very close. I don't think that you know he's lacking anything in his game. There's nothing he can't do."

That was not his view when he first saw Draper, the son of former LTA chief executive Roger Draper. "He was 14," McEnroe recalled. "He was like five ft one. The guy was tiny, so he had to work on everything, as all 14-year-olds do.

"He obviously had a lot of talent, you could see that. But I wasn't quite sure why he was even there to be honest. And I'm still not 100% sure. I believe his dad was running the British LTA so it seemed like he was at least going to be taken care of, obviously. So that part seemed to be a non issue. I'm not sure how tall his mum is, or exactly how tall his dad is. I didn't see that happening where now it's: 'Oh, my God, Jesus Christ, this guy's a physical specimen'."

Draper will be the highest home seed since Andy Murray defended the title in 2017 - and also carry the burden of British expectation as well as the mental and physical demands of a Grand Slam.

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"It comes down to belief at a certain point, a little bit of luck. and also the nerves issue that's been somewhat of an issue with him," added the American. "He's talked about it. The expectations are going to be way higher than they've ever been. So how is he going to handle that? And so that's going to be a factor coming in. I took a look at the forecast. Looked like it'd be pretty warm, not super hot. So that could be fine. But at a certain point that could be a factor if it turns out to be really hot."

McEnroe won his last Wimbledon title in 1984. Tennis has changed since but Super Mac reckons Draper should use his big left-handed serve and groundstrokes to get forward like in the old days.

"He's got such a big game," said the American, now 66. "He could be a little bit more aggressive and end points sooner. He can do pretty much anything. So he's got options available. He's got to feel out what's he is most comfortable with. When I was playing, the guy that taught me how to play, he'd tell me: 'You're going to get passed 30, 40 times'.

"That's going to happen if you're playing Bjorn Borg or Jimmy Connors. So he's got to accept that is going to happen against Alcaraz or Sinner or Djokovic, whoever it was. But when the going gets tougher, it's tight, late in the fifth set, then it's not as easy to execute. So it's a different story there. The wheels are always turning. So it's going to be interesting to see how he handles it, because this is the first time where it's the first time this guy can win the tournament.

"He seems to have put himself in a position after all these years, and the effort he's made to get himself in better condition. He's worked with someone to help his breathing, his nerves, everything. He's leaving no stone unturned. That sort of feels like what he needs to do, because you see these other guys that have put the bar so high."

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