Laver Cup: Taylor Fritz defeats Cameron Norrie to draw Team World level with Team Europe on Day 2

Taylor Fritz beat Cameron Norrie 6-1 4-6 10-8 to earn Team World a victory over Team Europe on Saturday afternoon.

However Fritz blitzed the opening three rounds as he went 3-0 up against the Briton with two breaks early on, encouraged from the sidelines by his team-mates.

That pace continued as the American pressed and moved 5-1 up as coach John McEnroe oversaw his success.

Norrie started strongly by winning the first game of the second set, moving over to Andy Murray on the sidelines for more advice and encouragement.

McEnroe looked on with no little frustration as Norrie continued the fight back as he went 2-0 up to give himself a chance by using his improving serve to build on that early break.

However Fritz was able to break back and put Norrie under pressure, breaking and also holding a service game to edge back ahead.

Roger Federer also offered advice to Norrie, that he flatten out his forehands, but he struggled to meet the requirements and was pushed hard to hold his serve. By serving wide – also at the suggestion of the now-retired Swiss – he was able to take it to 3-3.

Fritz responded by standing wide to receive serves, forcing Norrie down the middle, which dented the tactic’s effectiveness but nevertheless, Norrie was able to break and at 5-4 could serve for the second set, and he moved the match to a tie-breaker set.

The American emerged re-energised with the end in sight, and he moved into a 4-1 lead to give himself an excellent chance of closing out the match. His lead narrowed to 8-6 and then 8-7 with an unforced error close to the net, but he was able to push on to 10-8 and victory, to level the scores between the two teams at 4-4.

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