Jack Draper may well be the future of British men’s tennis but Cameron Norrie gave a timely reminder on Thursday that he is still around and, it seems, would quite like his British No 1 ranking back. In a match between the country’s top two, Norrie produced one of his best performances of the year as he clinched a 7-6 (3), 6-4, 7-6 (5) victory over the current No 1 to reach the third round for only the second time.
A semi-finalist two years ago, Norrie edged a tight first set thanks to a fast start in the tie-break. In the first clash between the British No 1 and No 2 in a grand slam event since Tim Henman beat Greg Rusedski at the Australian Open in 2002, Norrie’s greater grass-court experience and nous made the difference. He cruised through the second set and then recovered from 5-3 down in the third to wrap up a convincing victory.
