Jack Draper arrived at Wimbledon 2025 with form, belief, and the hopes of a nation on his shoulders. The British No.1 and World No.4 was tipped for a breakthrough year on grass, buoyed by his title at Indian Wells, a string of deep tournament runs, and a career-high seeding at the All England Club.
For many punters, Draper was a popular pick in the best free bets offers available ahead of the tournament—seen as a strong outside contender, even if not quite on the level of outright favourites like Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz. At the very least, a deep run in SW19 looked firmly within reach.
And he made the perfect start. Draper led Sebastian Baez by two sets to love in the opening round and was 2-1 up in the third when the Argentine was forced to withdraw through injury. It wasn’t the full match workout he might have wanted, but Draper had shown enough to justify the hype—and even his bold pre-tournament claim that he was ready to “lift the nation.”
Instead, the mood quickly shifted.
His second-round opponent was no ordinary underdog. Marin Cilic, the 2017 Wimbledon finalist, may now be ranked No.83 in the world and 38 years old, but his pedigree and big-game experience were never in doubt. And while Cilic is on a redemption mission late in his career, few expected him to outlast a fresher, higher-ranked Draper over four sets.
But that’s exactly what happened. Cilic’s booming serve and deep, aggressive returns proved too much, as he powered to a 6-4, 6-3 lead that stunned the Court 1 crowd into silence.
Draper rallied in the third set, raising hopes of a comeback with a dominant 6-1 response, but the Croatian—who won the US Open in 2014—held his nerve as a player of his experience should in the fourth to close it out 6-4.
Defeat in the second round means Draper has now fallen at this hurdle in three consecutive Wimbledon appearances. For a player seeded fourth and in excellent form, this early exit will sting more than most.
There’s no shame in losing to a former Grand Slam champion, but this was meant to be Draper’s year. Backed by form, seeding, and crowd support, anything less than a quarter-final berth was always going to feel underwhelming.
And for fans who used their free bets backing Draper for a home-soil fairytale, it’s another case of what might have been. He admitted it was “the toughest loss” of his career so far—and for the third straight Slam, it’s an early ticket home.
“Obviously, [I feel] really upset. Probably one of the toughest losses I feel,” a downbeat Draper said afterwards.
“I thought Cilic played an incredible match from start to finish. [He] didn’t let up. He deserved the win.”
The British crowd will rally again. So will Draper. But this was a painful reminder that Wimbledon glory doesn’t come easy—even for the nation’s brightest hope in years.