Andy Murray given boost ahead of next tournament by Cameron Norrie
Andy Murray says he's in the 'bad books' after losing ring
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Cameron Norrie is set to play his first-ever Masters 1000 semi-final in Indian Wells on Saturday (October 16). The 26-year-old is on a tear in the Californian desert and will overtake Dan Evans to become British No.1 when the rankings are updated on Monday. Off the back of his success in Indian Wells, Norrie has withdrawn from next week’s European Open in Antwerp, handing fellow Brit Andy Murray a boost in the main draw.
Norrie is having the best season of his career so far, having already reached five finals, one of which he won to claim his maiden tour title.
The world No.26 is now the highest-ranked player left in the Indian Wells draw, having beaten the likes of 15th seed Roberto Bautista Agut and 11th seed Diego Schwartzman on his way to the semi-final.
His dominant display against Schwartzman in his first-ever Masters quarter-final also earned him the British No.1 ranking, and he now faces Dimitrov for a spot in his sixth final of 2021.
Off the back of his success in California, Norrie has withdrawn from the ATP 250 event in Antwerp.
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He is the latest in a string of high-profile withdrawals including world No.11 Felix Auger-Aliassime, Fabio Fognini, Pablo Carreno Busta and Ugo Humbert.
Norrie isn’t the only Indian Wells semi-finalist to opt out of making a quick turnaround to travel from America to Europe, as his upcoming opponent Grigor Dimitrov has also withdrawn alongside Nikoloz Basilashvili, who faces Taylor Fritz in the second semi-final.
Norrie’s withdrawal, alongside the other top players, will be good news for his compatriot Murray.
Murray won the European Open back in 2019 – his first and only singles title since undergoing hip surgery – and is set to fall out of the world’s top 170 on Monday (October 18) when he loses his ranking points from the title win two years ago.
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With Norrie and his fellow top 50 players now out of the tournament, it leaves an easier draw for the former world No.1 to navigate, helping his chances of winning a second title in Antwerp.
Murray beat fellow three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka in a three-set comeback final back in 2019, and is returning to the tournament for the first time since winning.
He is already scheduled to play his opening match on Tuesday (October 19) though the draw is yet to be made.
Murray himself had an impressive run in Indian Wells, beating world No.51 Adrian Mannarino in the opening round before coming from a set down to beat 18-year-old rising star Carlos Alcaraz in the second round, in what many have deemed one of his best matches of his comeback.
The 34-year-old then lost a tight two-set match to world No.4 and recent Olympic gold medallist Alexander Zverev.
Norrie has kept the British flag flying in the Californian desert after recent US Open champion Emma Raducanu lost her first match to world No.100 Aliaksandra Sasnovich and Dan Evans lost to Schwartzman.
The 26-year-old was able to get the better of Schwartzman though, dropping just two games to book his spot in the last four.
Speaking of his 6-0 6-2 win over the Argentine, Norrie said: “Definitely my biggest match of my career probably leading in. Honestly out there, once the match begun, I was feeling very relaxed, and I was very in the present.
“I wasn’t really thinking too much and just going out and playing just like another match. Definitely more relaxed than all my other matches I have played this week, so I was very happy with how I handled everything.”
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