By Kingsley Elliot Kaye
It turned out to be just one of those days for Cam Norrie. One of those days when nothing goes in the right direction however hard you try, whatever you try. For some unfathomable reason, something is missing. This also makes these guys look so human, at times.
“I missed a lot in two of the most important departments of the game. Errors on my backhand side was not like myself. The second-serve return I missed a lot and gave him a lot of free points there. Was probably my best part of my game, and I didn’t do that well. That’s part of it.” He said after crashing out of the US Open on Monday.
It’s interesting how Rublev attributed such an un-standard performance of his opponent to excessive tightness. Indeed Norrie saw it differently.
“I felt actually very relaxed, and I think maybe too relaxed and too low energy,” he explained. “Usually in the other matches I was very nervous and very tight, but I felt like I used that and I was a bit more kind of electric and I was a bit sharper and was able to run for balls.
It was quite a different story for Andrey Rublev.
“I think today was everything going my side,” said Rublev. “When I needed to play, like making a good serve, I was making a good serve. Every time I needed him to miss he was missing. So everything was like today on my side. On top of that, I was playing good. I was making good shots, good winners and in the end I was able to win in three sets so I’m really happy.”
The match had taken off to an even start and soared to upper levels in the eighth game when Rublev conquered a 35 shot rally with a superb backhand down the line, and Norrie had immediately answered back with a forehand winner.
In a such a tight context any lapse can be fatal. In the next game Norrie missed three – yes, three – backhands in a row and was broken. Rublev soon after closed the set out with an ace.
A strangely low spirited Norrie had to save a break point in the first game but lost his following serve. This time it was his forehand which let him down.
A crosscourt forehand winner was a sign of awakening and Norrie even conquered a break point for breaking back but Rublev passed him with a backhand on full stretch. Norrie wasn’t able to construct other opportunities, still too many unforced errors hampering a true comeback, and Rublev smoothly maintained his one break lead till the end of the second set.
When two forehand errors by Norrie surrendered a break in the fifth game of the third set, the final curtain seemed to be falling.
In the next game he slammed his racquet to the ground out of frustration, after another missed backhand, and that ignited some fire, despite a warning for racquet abuse. He broke back.
“I think that was the best game of the match. I played the only game I had chances really to break. So I felt like I was able to release a little bit,” he said. “Obviously it’s not ideal to be breaking racquets and doing that. I very rarely do it, so I was able to kind of snap and change my energy and move a lot better for the next kind of 20 minutes. That was probably the best part of the match for me.”
The wick burnt out too soon. Another missed forehand, a double fault, an erratic backhand and Rublev whizzed off to 0-40. The Russian converted the third break point with a meticulous crosscourt backhand passing shot and serve out the match for a convincing win.
Norrie was disappointed but harbours ambitions for the next months. The ATP Finals in Turin are his ultimate goal. Meanwhile he’s looking forward to the grand team event…
“I’m really excited for the Davis Cup and back with crowds and to be playing in the team that we have with so much experience. It’s going to be the first time for me on the team with Andy (Murray) so I’m really looking forward to that. We’re all playing well, and we’ve got a home tie, so I’m really excited to get there. I’m going to prepare as well as I can for that. Yeah, it’s a very quick turnaround, so I’m really going to have to be ready for it. We have a great team, and I’m really looking forward to it.” He concludes.
