Novak Djokovic through to Wimbledon final after beating Cameron Norrie
Novak Djokovic will face Nick Kyrgios in Sunday’s Wimbledon final after beating British number one Cameron Norrie in a tense semi-final clash.
Kyrgios, 27, received an automatic walkthrough following Rafael Nadal's withdrawal from their semi-final clash - and the tournament - due to an abdominal injury.
The hopes of the nation had rested on Norrie's shoulders as he faced the defending champion and six-time winner Djokovic in the semi-final on Centre Court.
The 26-year-old is only the fourth British man in the Open era to reach a Wimbledon semi‑final after Andy Murray, Tim Henman and Roger Taylor.
But Djokovic, 35, who has claimed 20 major titles, proved too difficult to beat, winning 2-6 6-3 6-2 6-4.
In extending his run of successive grass-court victories to 27, the tennis star becomes the first man to reach 32 grand slam finals, while he has only lost one of his last 19 slam semi-finals.
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know.
In his post-match interview, Norrie said it was a "tough" match, which was "obviously a big situation for me".
“Obviously I started pretty well. He was a little bit nervous from what I could see," he told reporters. “He managed to draw up his arrows and really play solid the last three sets and he made it difficult for me.”
“It was tough for me to get into his service games. I was missing a couple key returns when I needed to in the games that I had chances. I think that was the difference. He just locked it down. “So I think it was a tough, tough lack of concentration in that moment. I mean, it wasn’t just down to that. There was a lot of other stuff. But it was looking good until then.”
A huge roar erupted when Norrie, who had taken just three games in their only previous meeting last year, won the first point against serve, and the British number one greeted his opening break with a leaping pump of the fist. The celebration was premature but also entirely understandable on the biggest day in the 26-year-old’s career.
The ninth seed was the first British player since Johanna Konta in 2017 to reach a Wimbledon singles semi-final and was under a huge amount of pressure to perform.
There was some good news for Britons on Friday though.
Britain’s Alfie Hewett, from Norwich, thrilled a bumper Court One crowd with a sensational comeback from a set and 5-1 down to reach the Wimbledon wheelchair singles final.
The 24-year-old's victory against Argentina's Gustavo Fernandez meant he has now reached his first Wimbledon singles final, where he will meet Japanese top seed Shingo Kunieda on Sunday.
Norrie, who has a Welsh mother and a Scottish father, enjoyed a rapid rise up the ATP rankings in recent years, but was still to make a real breakthrough at one of the sport's four major tournaments.
His biggest title came in 2021 at Indian Wells, one of the largest competitions outside the four Grand Slams, but Wimbledon 2022 will be the tournament where he rose to wider prominence.
Earlier in the tournament, fans described the British player as “mysterious” but more information has emerged about Norrie in recent days as his profile grows.
His girlfriend Louise Jacobi, 32, opened up about her relationship with “easy-going” Norrie, who is known to have a reserved character.
Norrie’s college coach on Wednesday described the sacrifices the British number one made to become a professional tennis player after a “crossroad” moment when he crashed a moped after drinking.
His current coach, Facundo Lugones, also gave fans an insight into how “competitive” the 26-year-old is, spending his time off court playing backgammon and Ludo with his fitness trainer.