Will Cameron Norrie make run for ATP Finals ahead of playing Aslan Karatsev at Stockholm Open?

One year ago, Cameron Norrie won the biggest title of his career.

The South African-born Brit, who grew up in New Zealand, beat Nikoloz Basilashvili in three sets to win Indian Wells. It was a result that propelled Norrie up the ATP rankings. He has since broken into the top 10 for the first time and made his first Grand Slam semi-final at Wimbledon, after which, if there were points on offer – they were removed after the decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players from the tournament – he would have broken into the top five.

But it is testament to Norrie’s level that this week he has only dropped four places in the world rankings after losing 1,000 points from his Indian Wells victory. He is also firmly in with a shot of making the Nitto ATP Finals, trailing Felix Auger-Aliassime, who currently occupies the final qualifying spot, by 700 points.

Despite his recent success, Norrie remains somewhat under the radar on the ATP Tour.

He has won two titles this season and has earned praise from fellow pros: Roger Federer said at Wimbledon last year that Norrie’s development was an example to others. “I feel like everything in his game has gotten a little bit better…I feel like he’s worked on his game. This is what I would like to see every player do.”

Andy Murray too described Norrie as a “great example” after his Indian Wells win. “As a competitor he is up there with the very best,” said Eurosport’s Mats Wilander after seeing Norrie beat David Goffin in the Wimbledon quarter-finals.

But while Norrie’s talents are valued by players, in other quarters he still appears underappreciated.

At Wimbledon, where he was the ninth seed and highest-ranked British player, he started not on a show court, but on Court Two. Even in the quarter-finals as the last Brit in the draw he didn’t make it onto Centre Court. “It is what it is,” he said after his first-round win. “I would like to be on a bigger court, but I’ll play on any court.”

At Indian Wells earlier in the year he expressed slightly more frustration after being put on Court 5 to start his title defence. “I was a little disappointed with the schedule on my first day. I think that showed a little lack of respect.”

Norrie has proven this year that he is here to stay. He made the quarters in Indian Wells before losing to Carlos Alcaraz, made his first Grand Slam semi-final at Wimbledon and also the last four in Cincinnati, taking out Alcaraz in a physical three-set contest. He also beat Auger-Aliassime on his way to making the final in Los Cabos.

Perhaps it’s Norrie’s style that keeps him from earning higher plaudits. If the rankings were based on style points he would probably not be as high as he is. On the forehand side he takes a large, sometimes ungainly looking, swing at the ball and the double-handed backhand can be awkward and punchy. His technique is unorthodox, yet consistent and very successful. Add to that a very deep physical well and it’s been Norrie’s recipe for success.

Some of Norrie’s endurance comes from having the lungs of a deep-sea diver, which allows him to stay in the red zone for far longer than other players.

“It’s insane,” his strength and conditioning coach Vasek Jursik told the LTA earlier this year. “When we’re doing the fitness and I’ve been monitoring the heartbeat it’s going straight to red, he can stay there for six to seven minutes and doesn’t look tired, and then he’s doing tennis skills and the technique doesn’t drop, so it’s something, what I said he’s born with it and we just try to keep it on the same level…I think it’s the biggest weapon he has.”

Norrie doesn’t have a monster shot to finish points, but he has his fitness. And he has worked hard to make his strength even more of a strength.

When the tennis season was postponed in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic Norrie went on hilly runs every day for two months. He was No. 58 in the world rankings at the time and had been hovering around the similar position for the previous few years. But, powered by his fitness and physicality, he has climbed up towards the top 10.

“Physically, he’s a beast,” LTA coach James Trotman said. “He’s one of the fittest guys on tour. His movement is incredible, he’s playing more aggressive, his weight of shot is much better, and I think the belief he has in himself and the team around him is clearly evident.”

If there’s a knock against Norrie it’s that he does not have a great win-loss record against top-10 players (6-26) and has benefitted from some kind draws at tournaments when he has gone on deep runs. But he has shown in wins over Alcaraz and Auger-Aliassime this year that he can compete against the best – and his position in the Race to Turin standings shows he is playing at a consistently high level.

Norrie returns to action in Stockholm this week before finishing his season in Vienna and Paris. He will need a deep run in Vienna (ATP 500) and/or Paris (Masters 1000) to have a chance to qualify for Turin, which would be a fitting reward for his steady rise over the last 18 months.

RACE TO TURIN STANDINGS – W/C OCT 17

• 1. Carlos Alcaraz – 6,460 points
• 2. Rafael Nadal – 5,810 points
• 3. Casper Ruud – 4,930 points
• 4. Stefanos Tsitsipas – 4,885 points
• 5. Daniil Medvedev – 3,555 points
• 6. Andrey Rublev – 3,440 points
• 7. Felix Auger-Aliassime – 3,065 points
• 8. Taylor Fritz -2,885 points
• 9. Hubert Hurkacz – 2,725 points
• 10. Novak Djokovic – 2,720 points
• 11. Alexander Zverev – 2,700 points
• 12. Cameron Norrie – 2,365 points
• 13. Pablo Carreno Busta – 2,315 points
• 14. Jannik Sinner – 2,310 points
• 15. Matteo Berrettini – 2,225 points