Cameron Norrie’s parents missed historic Indian Wells victory to walk the dogs

Cameron Norrie revealed his nervous parents opted to walk their dog instead of watching the new British number one win Indian Wells because they were too nervous.

The 26-year-old became the first Brit to win the BNP Paribas Open as he came from behind to defeat Nikoloz Basilashvili 3-6 6-4 6-1 in an hour and 49 minutes.

Norrie, who was down 3-1 in the second set before storming back, had become the first Brit to reach the final of one of the ATP’s nine elite Masters 1000 events since Andy Murray won in Paris back in 2016.

In securing the win, Norrie became the fourth player ranked outside the top 25 to win the BNP Paribas Open since it moved to Indian Wells in 1987, following Jim Courier (1991), Alex Corretja (2000), and Ivan Ljubicic (2010).

All four players were ranked at number 26 when they claimed their respective triumphs and Norrie flew up to a career-high ranking of world number 15 after defeating Basilashvili.

While his parents were undoubtedly pleased, they missed Norrie’s performance as they could not bear to watch the final.

“They actually didn’t watch the match,” Norrie told Sky Sports News. “They were too nervous to be watching so I spoke to them after, they were in tears.

“I was like so what did you guys do when I was playing? They said when you lost the first set we had to go out and walk the dogs, we were so nervous, we didn’t know what to do so they re-watched it knowing the result so they could relax.

“But they were so happy and my mum was in tears, so it was very special to speak to them after getting the title.”

Do you think Cameron Norrie will win a Grand Slam in his career? Let us know in the comments section.

The Indian Wells win was the second tournament win of his career, and is an excellent end to Norrie’s tremendous breakout season in which he won his first title at Los Cabos, Mexico in July.

The Brit has reached an impressive six finals this season, matched only by world number one Novak Djokovic, and he reached finals across three different surfaces on the hard court of San Diego, clay in Lyon and Estoril and the grass of Queen’s.

Sunday’s victory also saw Norrie take his 2021 record to 47 wins from 67 matches – but he is eyeing improved displays in Grand Slam tournaments.

“To win this title has been absolutely a big step for me, especially coming from winning Los Cabos, which was only an ATP 250,” he said.

“It’s been a lot of finals and a lot of them haven’t gone my way, so it’s nice for this bigger one to go my way, especially after coming unstuck in the Queen’s final, just before Wimbledon, than now is a tough one.

“It’s nice to reap the benefits in this one and I’m looking forward to next year a little bit.

“But I mean, to win a Slam is another animal, it’s so tough to do, but definitely heading in the right direction, a lot of work, a lot of tennis to be played for the rest of the year.”

Heading into the final, Norrie revealed how he had hoped the Indian Wells tournament would act as a launchpad to improve his performances in majors in 2022.

The 2022 Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the season, will take place between January 17-30.

Source: Read Full Article