That devil Norrie

Another hard-fought win snatched at the last minute like he does so well; he’s so tough to beat

Overwhelmed by the intensity Humbert put in and outplayed on the scoreboard, Norrie didn’t give up and gradually found his game as the match went on before finishing strong. Once he was properly into the match, it was good tennis from both sides. His attitude is “praiseworthy”; whether you like him or not, you have to admit the guy never lets anything go and gets into his opponents’ heads with his encouragements, which are sometimes borderline respectful. He said it was his worst match start and that he would probably change his warm-up so it doesn’t happen again. I expect him to be focused from the very first point against Kovacevic. Speaking of the American, I’m waiting to see him in a tougher match because he had it easy against Kyrgios; the Australian was nowhere near his best level physically or tennis-wise. Kovacevic did his job seriously, and I don’t forget that in fast conditions he can be dangerous; he’s already gone deep indoors in particular. However, his backhand is going to get sanded down against Norrie, and he’ll have to find solutions so he can dictate with his forehand. Given how Norrie defended against Humbert, who is one of the most aggressive players on tour, I think he’ll be quite comfortable defending against Kova. The heat could play a role: Norrie sometimes has physical dips, but Kovacevic doesn’t handle the heat well, he dreads Australian conditions and won’t necessarily have the edge in a third set. So there are very few scenarios where he comes out on top…