Cameron Norrie produced a brilliant display to beat Frances Tiafoe and reach the third round at Wimbledon.
With the No1 Court crowd firmly behind him, Norrie rallied from a set down to beat the 12th seed 4-6 6-4 6-3 7-5 in just under three hours.
Three years ago Norrie was a semi-finalist on home soil but has struggled recently, dropping down to 91st in the world in April, his lowest ranking in more than six years.
First-round defeats at Queen’s and Eastbourne did not exactly point to an imminent Wimbledon resurgence, but Norrie backed up his opening win over Roberto Bautista Agut in impressive fashion. He will face either 23rd seed Jiri Lehecka or Mattia Bellucci for a place in round four.
Tiafoe’s exit continued a familiar theme at SW19, with the American the 14th seed to be knocked out before tea-time on day three.
If Norrie is to embark on another extended journey through the Wimbledon draw, he is likely to find himself on Centre Court before long. However, the 29-year-old made it clear where he wants to be.
"I was really happy when I saw the schedule,” Norrie said. “I saw I was on Court One and that's my favourite court. It's an amazing atmosphere and we both played a really high level.
"It's so special. You forget so quickly. You just feel goose bumps. It's such a special court and such a special tournament. I just walked out and smiled as much as I could. And then you have to go out to battle. I'm really happy with my level today.”
After two days of blistering heat at Wimbledon, the more familiar summer serving of grey clouds and drizzle returned to the championships.
That cleared in time for the action to begin with the roof open and the stats pointed to an incredibly even first-set contest. Norrie won one point fewer in total, Tiafoe hit only one more winner and the pair were both tidy with just four unforced errors each.
The eye test, though, favoured Tiafoe, his forehand that bit more of a weapon, his regular use of the drop shot making Norrie working that bit harder. The Briton resorted to throwing his racket in the direction of one particularly well-disguised effort, though even that did not make up the ground.
A bizarrely tame smash from Norrie gave Tiafoe his first break point at 2-2 and, while he saved that, Norrie had no answer later in the game when a forehand landed bang on the baseline at his toes.
That break was the sole slip-up on serve from Norrie. He sent down seven aces in the set, including three in a row to make it 4-3, but there were no inroads made in the Tiafoe service games. A solitary deuce was as troubling as it got for the American in a set he took in 34 minutes.
Norrie’s first sniff of an opportunity came at 3-2 in the second set, when he hammered a crosscourt winner to force deuce and Tiafoe sent a wayward forehand long. As a response to adversity goes, back-to-back 136mph aces from Tiafoe was a fairly decent one.
A double fault from the American to give Norrie another break point was met with a cheer, this a needs must situation from the perspective of the British crowd, but again Tiafoe hit back to deny his opponent and make it 4-4.
He then brought up three of his own break points in the following game. In consecutive points, Norrie appeared to be stranded, near enough sat at his seat, but twice Tiafoe could not find the open court. It was a huge hold from 0-40 down.
Cam Norrie has Court One on its feet! 👏
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 2, 2025
He pulls level by taking the second set against Frances Tiafoe 💪#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/cqumVzi6w6
There are no bad times to break but there are particularly good ones, as Norrie found. Two set points came and went for him on the Tiafoe serve but it was third time lucky, a stunning backhand pass catching the line to level the match.
Norrie was in the ascendency and broke for a 3-1 lead in the third, but a loose game followed to allow Tiafoe to immediately get it back on serve.
Another chance came Norrie’s way, though, as he whipped a forehand winner down the line to break and move 5-3 ahead, and this time the Briton did not leave the door open behind him, serving out the set.
The third set set took 36 minutes - it was only 3-3 by that stage in the fourth. That was when Norrie’s charge came, battling from 40-0 down to force deuce with a perfectly judged lob. Tiafoe slipped behind the baseline to give Norrie a break point, one he converted after a thrilling rally, despite losing his footing himself.
When Tiafoe trudged to his chair and pulled out of smashing his racket at the last second, the end felt nigh. Norrie was only two games from victory but could not halve that requirement, shanking a forehand halfway to Centre Court as Tiafoe broke straight back for 4-4.
That burst from Tiafoe proved short-lived, a poor drop shot giving Norrie the chance of the break and the American then providing it gift-wrapped with a wild forehand. Norrie completed the job and another Wimbledon run is there to be had.
