Norrie breaks Top 50 after making semi-final in Acapulco

"Cam Norrie" (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Carine06

The new world number 48, Cameron Norrie had an excellent week in Acapulco as he reached his first ATP 500 semi-final.

He beat Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka in the first round before beating the Argentine Diego Schwartzman to move into the quarter finals. A comfortable straight sets win over Mackenzie McDonald set up a semi-final showdown with world number 3, Alexander Zverev.

Speaking, to the ATP Website, on court after the semi-final, Norrie said, “I was really nervous, it was going to be a big opportunity. We’re both around the same ranking.”

“I’m just really stoked to through to my first semi”.

The first set of the semi-final was a close fought encounter with each player breaking serve once. It went to a tie-break which Zverev won 7-0. It took just one break for the German to win the second set, 6-3.

Zverev would go on to lose in the final to Nick Kyrgios.

The disappointment of the defeat shouldn’t take away from a fine week’s work for Norrie, who next week goes into one of the biggest tournaments of the year, Indian Wells, full of confidence.

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Norrie wasn’t the only impressive Scottish performance of the week with doubles player Jonny O’Mara reaching the final of the Sao Paulo Open with his partner Luke Bambridge.

The pair beat the home country favourites, Brazilian duo Thomaz Bellucci and Rodrigo Dutra Silva, setting up a final with the Argentine team of Federico Delbonis and Maximo Gonzalez.

They lost 6-4 6-3 in the final in Rio but will take heart from a positive week.