The long, frustrating wait for a win is finally over for Britain's Cameron Norrie. At the Mifel Open in Mexico, Norrie beat Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-4, 6-1 in the opening round to end a punishing six-match losing streak. For him this was far more than a single result, it was a chance to rebuild the confidence that had slowly slipped away.
Norrie had not tasted victory since the Madrid Open back in April. That barren spell included a first-round exit at Wimbledon at the hands of qualifier Michael Zheng, a setback that stung for a player of his stature.
The Toll on His Ranking
The slide in form has hit his ranking hard. Norrie currently sits 39th in the ATP standings, and this is the first time this year that he has dropped out of the world's top 30, a clear sign of the pressure surrounding his career right now.
A Return to Where It Began
There is a neat twist to this win, because it came in Los Cobos, the very tournament where Norrie lifted his first ATP title back in 2021. The match itself was anything but smooth at the start. He had his serve broken twice in the opening set, including in the very first game. Yet the fifth seed refused to fold and clawed his way back into the contest.
The second set was a different story altogether. Norrie dropped only five points on serve and broke the American Kovacevic twice to seal the win in style. That performance carries him into the last 16, where he will face either Australia's James Duckworth or America's Aidan Mayo.
Disappointment for Boulter
Not every story out of the British camp was a happy one. British number two Katie Boulter crashed out of the Citi Open in the first round, stretching her own losing run to four matches.
In Washington DC, America's Ashlyn Krueger got the better of her, winning 3-6, 6-2, 6-2. The cruellest moment came in the deciding set, where Boulter held a 2-0 lead but then managed to win just four more points as the match slipped completely out of her grasp.
