Cameron Norrie in the R16 at the 2021 ATP Acapulco, Mexico
Cameron Norrie in the R16 at the 2021 ATP Acapulco, Mexico | (Photo by ALFREDO ESTRELLA / AFP) (Photo by ALFREDO ESTRELLA/AFP via Getty Images)

Tennis | Roland Garros 2021 | Norrie battles past Harris to set Nadal clash in Paris

  • Cameron Norrie def Lloyd Harris 4-6 6-3 6-3 6-2
  • Norrie v Rafael Nadal [3] | H2H: Nadal leads 2-0
PARIS, FRANCE – Cameron Norrie battled past Lloyd Harris to set up a third round clash with 13-time champion Rafael Nadal.

 

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Cameron Norrie def Lloyd Harris 4-6 6-3 6-3 6-2

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Cameron Norrie continued to wave the British flag at Roland Garros after coming back from a set down to beat Lloyd Harris in four sets. The first set saw the South African come out strong using his confidence from the win over Lorenzo Sonego to his advantage. Some impressive groundstrokes mixed with good play at the net gave him the break for 2-1 and never let his standards slip as he served out the opening set 6-4.

However Norrie raised his level especially on return in the next three sets, breaking Harris five times throughout and not even conceding a break point in any of the sets. The Brit’s impressive defensive qualities mixed with aggressive patterns of play ensured that it was his 16th win on the surface this season.

After the match Norrie was happy with how he dealt with being a set down.

“Yeah, I went a set down and I was thinking, I haven’t actually done too much wrong there, and just knuckled down and stayed very calm and ended up executing a little bit better, and he dropped his level a little bit. I was really happy with how I handled it. And I think I could have easily got frustrated with him serving rockets and hitting the spots and playing quick points, and it was actually pretty lively out there again today. It was so humid, and it was actually a pretty physical match.”

 

Cameron Norrie v Rafael Nadal [3] H2H & Match Fundamentals

Cameron Norrie v Lloyd Harris

H2H: Nadal leads 2-0

Roland Garros

Paris, France

Clay (O)

Prize Money: €113,000

Third on Court Suzanne Lenglen, not before 2:30pm (1:30pm BST)

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Next for Cameron Norrie is 20-time grand slam champion Rafael Nadal, who has a 102-2 win-loss record at Roland Garros.

 

Tale of the Tape – Key Stats (2021 – Clay)

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H2H:

Cameron Norrie (WR 45)

Rafael Nadal (WR 3)

Tournament Previous Best

R2 (2018)

Winner (2005-2008, 2010-2014, 2017-2020)

1st Serve %

65.5

64.2

Service Games Won %

82.4

82.2

Break Points Saved %

66.7

69.4

2nd Serve Return Points Won %

53.4

58.4

Break Points Converted %

46.2

42.5

As the statistics show, Norrie is facing one of the best players tennis has ever seen when it comes to serving and returning under pressure. However Norrie’s stats have been at a similar level to Nadal’s when it comes to winning service games.

 

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Playing Styles and Prediction

Nadal enters his favourite grand slam in good form having won Rome beating Novak Djokovic. This match is expected to be Nadal’s first real test on his way to a potential record-breaking 21st grand slam with the likes of Jannik Sinner, Diego Schwartzman and Djokovic still to come in his half.

Norrie’s style of play has actually stood up quite well as their meeting at the Australian Open, the Brit can hang with Nadal consistently but the problem is can he do it against the Spaniard when it matters most? A set against Nadal is definitely achievable but three sets is near impossible especially if conditions match what it has been over the tournament so far.

Prediction: Nadal in four sets.

 

 

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