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British No 1 Cameron Norrie won his third ATP Tour title by surviving a barrage of aces from the American giant Reilly Opelka during the Delray Beach Open final in Florida.
I’m super happy to get the win and beat a guy like Reilly, who is confident and playing well and won (in Dallas) last week. Cameron Norrie
In what was the first meeting between the top two seeds in the tournament’s 30-year history, Norrie, who won trophies at the Indian Wells Masters and Los Cabos in 2021, beat the big-serving Opelka, a tie-break specialist and last week’s Dallas champion, 7-6(1) 7-6(4).
Norrie was unable to convert any of the five break points he created against the world No 20 Opelka, who in turn was unable to generate a single break opportunity for himself though he blasted 25 aces past the Brit who could only produce 7 in reply!
Norrie raced through the first set tie-break and won the crucial points in the second set tie-break as well, most notably edging 5-4 ahead when Opelka’s forehand pass landed just long.
After starting 2022 with four straight defeats, Norrie, 26, will rise up one place in world terms to 12 following his excellent week in Delray Beach.
Norrie, who lost just one set on his way to the title, told the ATP’s website: “I thought I played a very clean match.
“I didn’t face a break point so that was great. I was happy with the way I played and obviously with the result.
“The tie-breaks I played extremely aggressively, the second one especially. I managed to put a couple of balls away and I was reading the play great. I’m super happy to get the win and beat a guy like Reilly, who is confident and playing well and won (in Dallas) last week.”
Reilly Opelka o and Cameron Norrie poses with their trophies after their final