Cool Norrie ‘good enough to beat Nishikori’

Cameron Norrie beat Denis Istomin 6-2, 6-4, 6-4

Cameron Norrie, the British No2, added to the feel-good factor around the home hopefuls yesterday with his first Wimbledon win.

Norrie produced a big-hitting display against Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin – best known for defeating Novak Djokovic at the 2017 Australian Open – to advance to the second round with a comfortable win. His reward will be a daunting-looking match tomorrow against No8 seed Kei Nishikori.

A naturally chilled-out character, Norrie revealed that his celebrations after beating Istomin would consist of little more than a phone call with his Scottish father, who lives in New Zealand. “He sent me a message saying: ‘Well done on your first win’,” Norrie said. “I’ll probably call him later. I think it was the middle of the night in New Zealand, where he was.”

Norrie, whose mother is Welsh, grew up in New Zealand – hence his Kiwi twang – and then studied at the Texas Christian University until two years ago. Perhaps it is this time spent away from the UK that partly explains why he has a lower profile here than one might expect from a Briton who cracked the world’s top 50 before his 24th birthday.

Norrie, 23, who is ranked No55, enjoyed the zippy conditions on Court 16, and used his whipped forehand to unsettle Istomin. As for Nishikori, Norrie added: “I’ve got nothing to lose. I know I’m good enough to beat him. If I put my best level out there, I’m going to be trouble for anyone.”