Cameron Norrie's Australian Open campaign ended in the third round as he lost to Alexander Zverev, bringing a close to British singles hopes at the tournament. The 26th seed went down 7-5 4-6 6-3 6-1 to the third seed, who has now won all seven of their tour-level meetings.
Norrie, the only British player to reach the third round, took a positive approach from the start, stepping into the court and attacking Zverev. He claimed the second set after breaking late, but faded in the third and fourth sets. Zverev, a finalist at Melbourne Park last year, tightened his grip after a poor service game from Norrie at 1-1 in the third set.
Reflecting on the match, Norrie said: "I thought the level was really good. First three sets, very good. There was maybe a slight dip in that third set, but it was kind of constant pressure, I thought, in all departments of the game." He added that he took confidence from competing at that level, though he acknowledged the fourth set got away from him quickly.
Norrie, 30, denied that fatigue from the nine sets he had played in his first two matches was a factor. He said he was already looking ahead, telling reporters: "I'm looking forward to the year, and I want to keep going out there and playing matches like this where I can push myself and challenge these guys."
The defeat marks the second consecutive grand slam where Britain has suffered a first-week exit in the men's singles. Attention will now turn to the return of Jack Draper, who is expected to rejoin Norrie in the Davis Cup next month.
