Then there were two and that it was Aljaz Bedene, back representing Slovenia, who has left the British men’s ranks so depleted is an irony lost on few. Indeed, though he does not compete for Great Britain any more, he revealed the England football captain, Harry Kane, played a role in his first-round victory against Cameron Norrie.
This time last year Bedene was celebrating a five-set win against Ivo Karlovic that ignited the home crowd; 12 months on and his four-set victory against Norrie has left British hopes reliant on Kyle Edmund and the teenage wildcard Jay Clarke. Andy Murray’s 11th-hour withdrawal has highlighted how fragile the supporting cast is.
Bedene used to be among that number but, not permitted to represent Great Britain in the Davis Cup, having previously done so for Slovenia, he switched back after three and a half years competing under the union flag. This victory must have been all the sweeter then against Norrie, born in South Africa to British parents, raised in New Zealand and college trained in the United States.
At times Bedene’s frustrations with the line judges – playing on court 14 there is not the benefit of Hawk-Eye – almost got the better of him but he explained how Kane served as his inspiration to stay calm. Indeed, Bedene even plans to wear an England football shirt on Tuesday to show his appreciation of their captain with Gareth Southgate’s side facing Colombia in the World Cup. “When [Kane] gets bad calls he’s still focused. He’s the type of player who just sticks to what he knows best. He doesn’t go against the referees. He accepts the mistakes.
“Against Tunisia he was pulled down and he stayed calm. I would freak out, because it was an important moment. I kept calm, which was good, although it wasn’t easy, because most of the things went against me.”
Norrie certainly had his moments, indeed he took the first set, but ultimately on his second Wimbledon he came up short. Bedene was competing for a sixth time here and perhaps that was the decisive factor – he won two tie-breaks in the third and fourth set, showing a touch more composure at the crucial points of an absorbing match, clinching a 4-6, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (4), 6-4 victory. Nonetheless Norrie turned professional only 14 months ago and to qualify outright, rather than rely on a wildcard, suggests a bright future.
“I handled the occasion a lot better than I did last year and I’ve grown a lot over the last year as a player but he just played more clutch than me in both tie-breaks,” Norrie said.
All is not entirely lost for Great Britain and Edmund, seeded 21st, is expected to beat the Australian qualifier Alex Bolt comfortably on Tuesday but defeat would leave Great Britain’s men’s contingent staring down the barrel of failing to get anyone beyond the first round for the first time in the open era.
Liam Broady, another wildcard, was the other Briton to bow out on Monday, competitive for the opening set against the 2016 finalist, Milos Raonic, but ultimately blown away by the big-serving Canadian, going down 7-5, 6-0, 6-1. As he pointed out afterwards, the British ranks would be strengthened were Dan Evans in attendance but Broady stopped short of questioning the decision not to give Evans a wildcard, having returned from his one-year drugs ban in April. “Dan is a fantastic grass court player, he’s a fantastic tennis player full stop and he’s beautiful to watch on the court,” Broady said. “But the All England made their decisions for obvious reasons. I think Dan understands that as well as anybody.”
Considering Broady is ranked 173rd in the world, there is little shame in losing to the 13th seed, even if Raonic won 13 of the last 12 games. If the 24-year-old was competitive in the opening set, eventually losing serve at 5-6 down with two consecutive backhands into the net, here was an illustration of the work that needs to be done to qualify on merit, citing Norrie as the example to follow.
“I’m hoping to get to the place that Cam’s in now,” Broady said. “He did a great job of it. It took him less than a year to get into the top 100. It definitely gives me heart to know that type of player can do really well.”
Norrie undoubtedly did so in a tight first set, edging it 6-4 but he lost a second in which he broke back twice in a tie-break. The third went the distance again but when a Norrie doubt fault ensured it went the way of Bedene, the Briton was always facing an uphill battle.
