Great Britain’s Cameron Norrie produced a brilliant performance to overcome second seed Denis Shapovalov 7-5, 6-3 to reach the cinch Championships final in London on Saturday.
Home favourite Norrie won 76 per cent (32/42) of his first-service points and came back from a break down in the opening set to become the first Brit to reach the final at The Queen’s Club since 2016, when Andy Murray defeated Milos Raonic.
British Singles Finalists At Queen's Club (Open Era)
“I think I played very, very well today, I was extremely clutch on some of the big points,” Norrie said. “I am so pleased to be through to the final here, I can’t even describe it. It has not really sunk in yet. It is nice to get over the line there, and all credit to Denis, it was a tough match.
“It is a huge tournament for me and one of my biggest achievements so far, so I couldn’t be more pleased with myself. Let’s see if I can win one more tomorrow.”
The 25-year-old is currently at a career-high FedEx ATP Ranking of 41, and is now 29-12 on the season, after advancing in 94 minutes. Norrie, who reached the finals at the Open Parc Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes Lyon (l. to Tsitsipas) and the Millennium Estoril Open (l. to Ramos-Vinolas) this year, will face top-seeded Italian Matteo Berrettini in his third ATP Tour final of the season.
[WATCH LIVE 1]
After Shapovalov made a fast start to move 2-0 ahead on centre court, Norrie broke back to level up at 3-3. The Brit then started to dictate on the left-hander’s second serve, winning 60 per cent (9/15) of points on it in the opener and he claimed the set with a sensational backhand passing shot at 5-6.
Norrie continued to play aggressively in the second set, stepping into court and targeting Shapovalov’s serve to good effect. While he was unable to break at 3-2, after the Canadian had treatment on an injury, he did in the eighth game and fought through his final service game to advance.
Shapovalov had beaten France Tiafoe 6-3, 6-4 earlier on Saturday, after his match against the American had been suspended due to bad light on Friday evening. However, the Canadian, who reached the Gonet Geneva Open final (l. to Ruud) in May, could not replicate his performance levels against Norrie, and is now 18-13 on the season.
Home favourite Norrie won 76 per cent (32/42) of his first-service points and came back from a break down in the opening set to become the first Brit to reach the final at The Queen’s Club since 2016, when Andy Murray defeated Milos Raonic.
British Singles Finalists At Queen's Club (Open Era)
| Player | Year (Champion) |
| John Paish | 1972 |
| Roger Taylor | 1973 |
| Mark Cox | 1977 |
| Tim Henman | 1999, 2001-02 |
| Andy Murray | 2009, '11, '13, '15-16 |
| Cameron Norrie | 2021 |
“I think I played very, very well today, I was extremely clutch on some of the big points,” Norrie said. “I am so pleased to be through to the final here, I can’t even describe it. It has not really sunk in yet. It is nice to get over the line there, and all credit to Denis, it was a tough match.
“It is a huge tournament for me and one of my biggest achievements so far, so I couldn’t be more pleased with myself. Let’s see if I can win one more tomorrow.”
The 25-year-old is currently at a career-high FedEx ATP Ranking of 41, and is now 29-12 on the season, after advancing in 94 minutes. Norrie, who reached the finals at the Open Parc Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes Lyon (l. to Tsitsipas) and the Millennium Estoril Open (l. to Ramos-Vinolas) this year, will face top-seeded Italian Matteo Berrettini in his third ATP Tour final of the season.
[WATCH LIVE 1]
After Shapovalov made a fast start to move 2-0 ahead on centre court, Norrie broke back to level up at 3-3. The Brit then started to dictate on the left-hander’s second serve, winning 60 per cent (9/15) of points on it in the opener and he claimed the set with a sensational backhand passing shot at 5-6.
Norrie continued to play aggressively in the second set, stepping into court and targeting Shapovalov’s serve to good effect. While he was unable to break at 3-2, after the Canadian had treatment on an injury, he did in the eighth game and fought through his final service game to advance.
Shapovalov had beaten France Tiafoe 6-3, 6-4 earlier on Saturday, after his match against the American had been suspended due to bad light on Friday evening. However, the Canadian, who reached the Gonet Geneva Open final (l. to Ruud) in May, could not replicate his performance levels against Norrie, and is now 18-13 on the season.