“I had to battle a few demons,” Cameron Norrie redeems himself defeating Carlos Alcaraz to win the 2023 Rio Open
Cameron Norrie reflects back on his first title win of the season in three attempts.
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Cameron Norrie
The world No.12, Cameron Norrie upsets the top seed and world No.2, Carlos Alcaraz by ending his good run on the court. The Briton defeated Alcaraz in an exciting final at the Rio Open 2023. The 27-year-old claimed the second-biggest title of his career in some style. In an epic final he defeated the Spaniard 5-7, 6-4, 7-5. Alcaraz suffered from a thigh problem that hampered his game but nevertheless, he fought hard as always.
Norrie on the other hand made a remarkable comeback after losing the first set and won the match in two hours and forty minutes. This is Norrie’s third final this year and second against Alcaraz. He, unfortunately, lost the other two finals and won in Rio to redeem himself. He was overwhelmed by a series of attempted winners and drop shots from his opponent’s end.
However, Norrie maintained his composure and clinched the ATP 500 event, which marked his third final of the season. Norrie took his revenge against the former world No.1 for the loss in the Argentina Open just after seven days. With this win, Norrie also climbed up in the ATP rankings to 12th pushing Jannik Sinner down to 13th.
Norrie spoke after winning the title and said, “I had lost a couple of finals this year but I turned it round on a surface that I’m not that comfortable with, I had to battle a few demons.”
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Cameron Norrie holds off Carlos Alcaraz’s dream run
Right from the start, the match appeared to be evenly matched, and Norrie had several opportunities to take the lead before being broken at 5-5. Suddenly, there was a drastic shift in momentum as the Spaniard won the next five games. Norrie appeared disoriented after slipping on a line and taking a nasty fall, which led to him double-faulting too frequently. He also voiced his concerns to the umpire about the playing surface.
There was a shift in the leads between the top two seeds throughout the match that made it even more interesting for the fans to watch. After managing to level the match against Alcaraz, Norrie faced his opponent’s aggressive tactics and found himself trailing early on in the third set. Despite the pressure, the British player maintained his composure and ultimately emerged victorious.
However, both these players have a chance to meet in another final in seven days. Cameron Norrie and Carlos Alcaraz are playing in the Mexico Open from tomorrow and fans will keep a close eye on these two players to see if they meet again in the tournament.
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Santhosh Tenneti
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