British number ones Katie Boulter and Jack Draper each reached another quarter-final as they look to finish their respective career-best seasons strongly.
Boulter reached her fourth WTA Tour quarter-final of the year by sweeping aside Japan’s Kyoka Okamura in the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo.
The 28-year-old won 6-1 6-2 against 271st-ranked Okamura, who lost in qualifying but was placed in the main draw as a lucky loser.
Draper, 22, moved into the last eight of the Erste Bank Open in Vienna with a 7-5 6-1 victory over Italy’s Luciano Darderi.
US Open semi-finalist Draper will contest his ninth ATP quarter-final of 2024 after a strong serving performance which allowed Darderi little opportunity to break.
Boulter enjoying ‘free swing’
Boulter is ranked 33rd in the world after a year which has yielded two WTA titles and a breakthrough into the top 30.
While she has been unable to go past the third round of a major, Boulter has regularly asserted her authority with her powerful baseline game.
That is what happened in Tokyo as the gulf between Boulter and Okamura showed.
Providing greater consistency from the baseline, and showing glimpses of craft, Boulter’s level was too much for Okamura to handle.
“I’m playing some good tennis,” said Boulter, who reached her first quarter-final since Eastbourne in June.
The clinical victory sets up an intriguing clash with Canadian wildcard Bianca Andreescu.
Andreescu, 24, won the 2019 US Open as a teenager but has been plagued by injury problems since.
“It’s a free swing for me at the end of the year and I have nothing to lose,” said Boulter, who has no ranking points to defend and could move back into the top 30 this week.
Draper looking sharp and refreshed
Like Boulter, Draper is aiming to finish the finest year of his career with a flourish.
The left-hander has climbed into the world’s top 20, aided by greater physical robustness and playing his most matches in a single season as a result.
Making sensible decisions based on listening to his body has also been beneficial.
Draper had not played for a month before this week, having pulled out of Shanghai as a precaution with an abdominal injury suffered the week before in Tokyo.
That came after he raised concerns about the scheduling demands put on players.
“I feel really good. I didn’t know what to expect coming out after being injured and I was ill for a week,” said Draper, who plays Czech Tomas Machac next.
“Potentially I was going to be rusty and not feeling good but I’ve been really strong.”
Looking refreshed and sharp, Draper had to be patient before wearing down Darderi.
Draper broke serve for a 6-5 lead and fired down four aces in the next game to seal the opening set, having won all 21 points on first serve.
In the second set Draper continued to play aggressively and confidently as a frustrated Darderi unravelled.
