Cameron Norrie fights again in opposition to Jordan Thompson to achieve Queen’s quarter-finals
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n every week the place Australia has had a sporting stranglehold on British soil, Cameron Norrie edged out Aussie Jordan Thompson to e book his place within the quarter-finals at Queen’s.
A day after Andy Murray had acquired a wake-up name in opposition to Thompson’s countryman Aleix di Minaur and England’s cricketers suffered a narrow defeat, Norrie seemed to be going the identical method when dropping the opening set to Thompson.
As he has in current weeks, Norrie struggled along with his ball toss occasionally and couldn’t fairly discover consistency in his early recreation plan.
In distinction, Thompson served effectively and was deserving of the lead just for Norrie to play his method again into the tie, more and more show the aggressor and take what appeared like a comparatively snug win on the finish with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 scoreline.
Afterwards, he stated: “He dropped his level slightly… and I was able to come out with a lot more energy. That was the difference. There wasn’t a lot in it. But it’s the perfect match heading into Wimbledon.”
Thompson was a tricky second-round opponent, his capability on grass such that he was earmarked by Murray in his post-match press convention as a risk each right here and at Wimbledon.
In the opening set, Norrie discovered himself dealing with two break factors in recreation 5, which he rescued after poor returns from Thompson on two second serves.
The British No1 confronted precisely the identical plight in his subsequent service recreation courtesy of hitting a volley into an open court docket lengthy after which letting a smash go solely to see the ball drop in.
Thompson promptly broke on the second time of asking and, regardless of dealing with a break-back level when serving for the set at 5-4, staved off that risk.
Even when not essentially taking part in his finest tennis – as was the case at occasions throughout the match – Norrie has a propensity to grind down his opponents and grind out the wins.
He produced two beautiful back-to-back photographs, although, to get the break to go 4-2 within the second set, a forehand down the road to cross his opponent on the internet after which a lob, whose trajectory was aided by coming off the body.
In the third set, he obtained a fair early break and Thompson, for all his scrambling efforts, couldn’t fairly claw his method again.
Norrie had been as a consequence of return to court docket later within the males’s doubles in a uncommon pairing with Andy Murray however Murray pulled out citing fatigue as he turned his consideration to his Wimbledon preparations.