Cameron Norrie finally has a win to celebrate. The British number two ended a painful six-match losing streak on the ATP Tour with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Aleksandar Kovacevic in the first round of the Mifel Open in Los Cabos, Mexico.
The result marked Norrie's first win since the Madrid Open in April, a drought that included a bruising first-round exit at Wimbledon at the hands of qualifier Michael Zheng. Ranked 39th in the world, it is the first time Norrie has slipped outside the top 30 this year, making the result in Mexico all the more significant for his confidence heading into the rest of the hard-court season.
The match was far from straightforward. Norrie dropped serve in the very first game and was broken twice across the opening set, yet he showed real resilience to trade breaks back and eventually close out the set. The second set was a different story entirely. Norrie was near-dominant, dropping just five points on his serve and breaking Kovacevic twice to wrap up the match convincingly.
The win carries extra sentimental weight given that Los Cabos is where Norrie lifted his maiden ATP title in 2021. He will next face either Australian James Duckworth or American Aidan Mayo in the second round.
Meanwhile, Katie Boulter endured a tougher day in Washington, where Ashlyn Krueger defeated her 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 at the Mubadala DC Open. Boulter had looked sharp early, winning the first set and going up 2-0 in the decider, but Krueger stormed back to extend the British player's losing run to four matches.
TennisDraw users tracking the Mifel Open bracket will be watching closely to see if Norrie can carry this momentum deep into the draw.
