Cameron Norrie: How Britain’s home hope ‘squeezed the lemon’ on road to Wimbledon semi-finals
Norrie does not have an overwhelming weapon and there is not a part of his attacking game that would be considered inside the top 20 in the world. What he does have, though, is easy to get behind, especially for a British crowd. Norrie’s effort and defence behind the baseline created energy in Centre Court during his third-round victory over Steve Johnson – as well as a new chant. “Norrie, Norrie, Norrie – Oi, Oi, Oi!” was the cry, and for those members of the crowd watching the British No 1 for the first time, it would have been hard not to fall for an engaging, committed performance.
Still, you could hear their surprise when Norrie answered the opening first question of his post-match interview on Centre Court. The distinctive vowels of his New Zealand accent spoke of his unlikely path to becoming a home favourite at Wimbledon. Norrie was three years old when his parents – both microbiologists, father David from Glasgow, mother Helen from Cardiff – moved to Auckland from his birthplace of Johannesburg. They were both former squash players, and although Norrie played a variety of sports growing up it was tennis that stuck.
A 21-year-old Norrie was beaten in straight sets by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on his Wimbledon debut in 2017
The decision to represent Great Britain came when Norrie was 17 years old. The LTA’s national tennis centre in Roehampton was able to provide better opportunities to support Norrie’s junior career but when he needed to take the next step Norrie chose an unconventional route. He became a Horned Frog, enrolling at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, and would go onto become the No 1 ranked college player in the NCAA by his junior year.
A moped crash in his second year after “a pretty big night and definitely a couple too many” resulted in six stitches in his chin and a missed pro tournament. “It was a realisation that I was kind of not doing it the way I wanted to do it and making not the best decisions,” he says now. “I was going out more than I probably should have been, like a typical student there at TCU, enjoying myself a lot. After that the coaches really kicked me into gear and I was definitely more professional after that. I grew up a lot after that. From then on, I was like, OK, I want to play tennis and commit to that and do that.”
He turned professional in 2017, entered the top 200 the following year, and was established in the top 100 by the end of his second full season. Norrie, although understated, is confident of his own abilities and when asked ahead of the 2021 campaign to name a player who would have a breakout year, his answer was himself.
Last year saw several deep runs in ATP tournaments, four finals and two additional titles – including one of the most prestigious events outside of the grand slams at Indian Wells in California. Norrie, who has always set high goals for himself, continued to tick his own boxes and reached the top 10 in the world, but his ranking was not reflected by a change in stature.
Norrie secured the biggest title of his career at the delayed Indian Wells tournament in 2021
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Norrie returned to Indian Wells in March as defending champion, only to be shoved onto the smaller outside courts in favour of the bigger names taking centre stage. “It didn’t show much respect,” Norrie said, and there are similarities between that slight and what he dealt with upon arriving at Wimbledon.
The tennis, though, has done the talking and Norrie has moved through the gears since surviving a five-set epic against Jaume Munar in the second round. Norrie was impressive in his straight sets wins against Johnson and then his good friend Tommy Paul. “I feel like I’m improving and my level is getting better,” Norrie said, and after replicating Murray and Tim Henman by reaching the semi-finals for the first time, he will believe his Wimbledon journey is not over yet.
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