Draper’s previous trips to Roland Garros have been memorable for the wrong reasons.
The left-hander retired during his main-draw debut two years ago and lamented being known as “the guy who is injured a lot”, before struggling with his serve in a miserable defeat against 176th-ranked Jesper de Jong last year.
This year, he has returned as different proposition – and with a point to prove.
Over the past 12 months, Draper has enjoyed a steep rise and achieved a series of notable career landmarks.
He has moved into the world’s top five after reaching his first Grand Slam semi-final at last year’s US Open, winning ATP titles on grass and hard courts, as well as reaching his first clay-court final in Madrid last month.
Observers with a deep understanding of the game have long insisted Draper has the ability to perform well on the red dirt, with British former world number four Tim Henman telling BBC Sport recently his best attributes – his left-handed serve and crunching forehand – could “work on any surface”.
Once he got going against Bellucci, Draper proved that again.
Cutting out double faults helped his first serve became increasingly dominant – climbing from 58% of points won with the opening shot in the first set to 92% in the second – while the volume of forehand winners also increased.
The venom of this shot was too hot for Bellucci to handle – and wowed the Paris crowd, who regularly gasped at Draper’s power and accuracy.
Another forehand zinger on his first match point clinched victory and a second-round meeting with either France’s Gael Monfils or Bolivia’s Hugo Dellien on Thursday.
