I can’t believe my old man’s on Tour while I charge on in the Big Apple ALL THE FIRST-ROUND ACTION
Kilted Kiwi Cameron is keeping Scottish hopes alive in the absence of crocked Murray
I’m pretty Scottish I think. I’ve been a few times but I don’t like the weather CAMERON NORRIE
KILTED Kiwi Cameron Norrie soared to new heights in New York last night then revealed his old man missed out because he’s preparing for the Tour de France. Norrie, 22, gave Scottish tennis something to celebrate in the absence of Andy Murray by marching into the second round of the US Open. He also declared his allegiance to the saltire with his dad, microbiologist David, hailing from Glasgow and the extended family settled around Aberdeenshire. Norrie was born in South Africa, raised in New Zealand from the age of three and then left for London to further his tennis career at the age of 16. He was rated the top college player in the States before graduating from Texas Christian University and continued his winning streak with a 7-6 (7) 6-1 win over Russian Dmitry Tursunov, who retired with a knee injury. It was a good day for British men, with Kyle Edmund also progressing with a 6-3 7-5 6-3 win over 32nd seed Robin Haase. But Heather Watson crashed out at the first round for the seventh year in a row with a 6-4 6-4 loss to Alize Cornet. Norrie, who made the US Open via the qualifiers said: “It would have been nice to have won the last point in the match but I’m really happy and looking forward to the next round. I’m loving New York, I’m stoked. “I was a little more nervous than usual because I didn’t know what to expect from Tursunov. “He looked great in the warm-up but his knee was bothering him and I don’t think he even wanted to complete the second set.
“I’m here on my own, none of the family could make it unfortunately. My dad’s in New Zealand preparing to head off to Europe. He loves cycling and is off to do a couple of the mountains from the Tour de France stages.
“He’d loved to have been here but his trip was booked well in advance and I couldn’t twist his arm.
“I’m pretty Scottish I think. My dad was born in Glasgow, my mum is from Cardiff. I’ve been to Scotland a few times, although I don’t like the weather.
“I played a little bit of rugby, cricket, tennis and soccer when I was younger but mostly cricket and tennis were my two favourite sports.
“I chose tennis because the fielding in cricket was just too boring. I was actually better at cricket than tennis for a little bit but I was a batsman. Fielding just wasn’t for me.”
Norrie is ranked fifth in British tennis and has already been called into the Davis Cup squad by skipper Leon Smith.
The spotlight shone brightly on him yesterday in the absence of Murray, who was due to play at the same time on the opening day before his late call-off with a hip injury.
Norrie will now face Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta, seeded 12th, tomorrow as he bids to climb from his current world ranking of 225.
He said: “I didn’t look at this as an opportunity to create headlines in the absence of Andy. I can’t look at it like that. I’m happy I’m through and it’s tough for Andy. I feel bad for him but I’m sure he’ll be back.
“I’ve built my confidence by winning three games in the qualifiers and I feel more comfortable on the hard court than I do on grass.
“It was a different feeling than walking out to play Jo Wilfried Tsonga at Wimbledon. I was on a pretty big court so I was more nervous, especially playing Tsonga who was in such good form. This time I just went out and enjoyed it.”
Watson insists she’s still head over heels for the Big Apple, despite another first-round loss.
She said: “I still love New York. I felt a lot better in my match today than I have in some previous years.
“I didn’t feel bad out there, I just felt she was better than me on the day.”