Indian Wells: Jack Draper fights back for ‘huge’ Indian Wells win over Novak Djokovic

Djokovic, who was runner-up to Alcaraz at the Australian Open in January, clinched the opening set, winning 87% of the points on serve.

But Draper stabilized to force the decider as the quality improved and Djokovic won a grueling 26-shot rally in the opening game at 30-30 on the Serb’s serve.

The Briton broke his opponent’s next service game but broke back when the match went to a tiebreak, serving for a 5-4 lead.

Draper once again rebounded impressively and progressed to the quarter-finals against former world number one Daniil Medvedev.

“It was a real physical challenge, there were definitely a lot of ups and downs in the match,” said 24-year-old Draper.

“Winning this game is something I’ll never forget.”

Djokovic, who played his first tournament at the Australian Open in January and reached the final, believes he has paid the price for the 26-shot rally.

“It cost me a break afterwards,” he said. “It was great to get that point in that game but I was completely out of gas.

“The crowd was supporting me and I felt the energy. It was like, ‘Maybe I’ll get this.’

“It was so close, so close. I mean, just a few unfortunate mistakes on my part.”

“He’s playing at a great level. Overall a great player, great guy.”