Cameron Norrie’s disappointing summer at the Grand Slams continued on Sunday as the British tennis player suffered a first-round defeat at the US Open.
The 31-year-old, seeded 29th at Flushing Meadows, won a hard-fought opening set against unseeded Frenchman Luca Van Assche before his challenge faded.
Norrie edged the first set 7-6 (8-6) in a gruelling tie-break but Van Assche responded strongly, winning the next three sets 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 to complete a comeback victory.
The defeat extended a difficult run for Norrie, who also failed to progress beyond the opening round at both the French Open and Wimbledon earlier this year.
His latest loss came on the same day he woke up to news that he had been overtaken as Britain’s number one by Arthur Fery, following Fery’s run to the Winston-Salem final.
Norrie had shown some form away from tennis recently, revealing that he won a padel competition among friends during his stag do in Ibiza last month. However, that victory offered little consolation after his latest Grand Slam disappointment.
Van Assche, 22, recovered from losing the opening set to dominate the remainder of the contest, leaving Norrie to reflect on another frustrating early exit at a major tournament.
