Madrid Open boss dug out over Jack Draper schedule live on Sky Sports

Madrid Open tournament director Feliciano Lopez was put on the spot after he failed to schedule British No. 1 Jack Draper on the main Manolo Santana Stadium court for his quarter-final. Lopez is also part of Sky Sports' punditry team, and appeared live on air ahead of Wednesday's night session at the Caja Magica.

The retired former No. 12 praised Draper's rise and branded him "my boy" before being called out for putting the fifth seed on the second-biggest showcourt in Thursday's order of play.

Draper booked his spot in his first Masters 1000 quarter-final on clay, in just over an hour on Wednesday. The Brit has been clinical throughout the fortnight in Madrid and has yet to drop a set.

The world No. 6 is also the highest-ranked man left in the tournament following some withdrawals and shock early exits for big names like Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev.

However, he failed to get top, centre court billing for his quarter-final. Instead, Draper has been relegated to the Arantxa Sanchez Stadium for Thursday's showdown with Matteo Arnaldi.

The Sky Sports team made sure to grill tournament boss Lopez on his decision. "I can't believe he's on Arantxa-Sanchez, we need to speak with someone from the tournament! Who made this decision?" Colin Fleming jibed.

"We have only two slots on Centre! I know, he's my boy! I love Jack Draper so much, you know that," the Spaniard replied, trying to justify his decision.

Draper and Arnaldi aren't the only ones who been put on the second court, as Francisco Cerundolo vs Jakub Mensik will take place on the same stage.

Casper Ruud and Daniil Medvedev will contest the first match of the day on Manolo Santana Stadium. The players headlining the night session match have yet to be determined.

The winner of a match between Lorenzo Musetti and will meet either Grigor Dimitrov or Gabriel Diallo.

Although Draper has not been handed a primetime slot on Thursday, he has still made a lasting impression on the Madrid Open boss.

"It was amazing the way he was playing today, he completely outplayed his opponent. So far he's been playing great," Lopez said of the world No. 6.

"I remember two years ago at the US Open when we were talking in the studio, we were wondering if he was going to be able to just show up, and that is only two years ago and his rise was just meteoric.

"He's top 10 now, in two years he has improved not only his game, his consistency, his physicality as well. He's a player that can play also everywhere. This is the proof that he can play also on clay.

"I think he has improved his fitness condition lately a lot and also his game can adapt to different surfaces. I think he can play from the baseline, with his forehand he can do almost everything he wants. Big serve, big guy, good attitude as well."

Draper will be hoping he can get past world No. 44 Arnaldi - - so he can reach the semi-final and guarantee himself a place on the Manolo Santana Stadium on Friday.