Cameron Norrie the unlikely British hero forced to flee South Africa as a child

Telegraph

11 hours ago

There are not many tougher challenges at Wimbledon than facing a two-time defending champion on the back of a 22-match unbeaten streak. But then Cameron Norrie is no stranger to adversity and that might just be the key to him reaching this year's quarter-finals.
Carlos Alcaraz has not tasted defeat since April 14, in the Barcelona Open final against Holger Rune, having since claimed titles at the French Open, Rome Masters and Queen's.
So far this year, there seems to be little to stop Alcaraz cruising to a third straight Wimbledon title. But should Norrie manage to halt the Spaniard's astonishing form, he would finally achieve the potential many insist he still has following a professional career largely spent in the shadow of Sir Andy Murray.
Norrie's run to the quarter-final has already been career-reviving. By reaching the last eight his ranking will soar and put him back into contention to be a seeded player for the US Open. That resilience can be easily identified by the moments that shaped his formative years.
Norrie is not the most obvious candidate to shoulder the nation's hopes at Wimbledon this year. In fact it is almost inconceivable that he has done so given the prominence of fourth seed Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu, but his story is one of many twists and turns.
Traumatic burglary at family home
Born in Johannesburg in South Africa to a Scottish father and Welsh mother – both microbiologists – Norrie was only three years old when his family were forced to flee after a traumatic home break-in.
Mother Helen had several marathon-running trophies stolen during the home invasion and with the city becoming increasingly unsafe, the Norries left for Auckland, New Zealand, in 1998.
'We lived in a sort of complex with barbed wire electric fencing, there was an automated gate as you drove up,' Norrie's father, David, has said previously. 'One night our neighbour was the victim of a carjacking. He had a gun put to his head and there was a baby in the back of the car.
'We sort of decided at that point that this was not the place to bring up kids and started making plans to emigrate. We had lots of friends who had been burgled. Moving somewhere like New Zealand, we looked at the change to a very active lifestyle.
'It was one of the best decisions we made in terms of space and where to bring up a family. If we had stayed in South Africa I guess things might have worked out differently.'
Norrie followed his father's footsteps into racket-sports, choosing tennis instead of squash where David was a former universities champion.
During his time in the Land of the Long White Cloud, Norrie switched from a right-handed tennis player into a left-handed one, and cultivated a resilience and stamina to begin to lay the groundwork on his tennis abilities.
Norrie's upbringing remains recognisable in his accent that carries an unmistakable Kiwi twang. But with New Zealand not renowned as a hotbed for tennis, the Lawn Tennis Association offered him a chance to move to the country of his parents' birth and begin training with them – on condition that he had to switch allegiance to Great Britain.
Before becoming a fully-fledged member of the tennis circuit, Norrie attended the Texas Christian University, starting a trend that others have since followed in the form of Jacob Fearnley and Jack Pinnington Jones.
Fast-forward to today and Norrie will be the latest to try and do what no player has achieved at Wimbledon since Jannik Sinner in the 2022 fourth round; beat Alcaraz.
Blockbuster showdown with Alcaraz
Instead of being fazed by a contest that would be a daunting prospect for any tennis player, Norrie says it is a challenge he will relish. 'I'm really excited to play Carlos on the big stage, the best tournament in the world and maybe his best surface as well, with all of the confidence that he has as well,' Norrie said.
'I'm going to have to watch with my coach and have a look. There's not too many holes in his game. But I'm excited to play against him, and I'm going to have to play my best level, and even better, to have a chance with him, because he's got such a diverse game.
'I'm going to have to be tough and bring more energy to have a chance with Charly [Alcaraz].'
Although the two have played each other six times previously, with Norrie winning twice, which includes their most recent in Rio de Janeiro in 2023, none have come on grass. If he is to make it three, Norrie may need to rely on mental craft as much as anything.
At Wimbledon this year, Norrie has exasperated his opponents with his constant chuntering to his box, punctuated with regular fist-pumps and exuberant growls. Both Frances Tiafoe and Nicolas Jarry were left frustrated by the British player's conduct as they exited at his hands.
Alcaraz does not seem the type to be concerned by his opponent's antics – even if they are prone to bouncing the ball before a second serve 25 times as happened against Jarry – but Norrie's 'energy' will be a different aspect of the game to contend with.
Nicolas Jarry tried to play Cameron Norrie at his own game 😬 #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/KNy6fAqgwT
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 6, 2025
'A couple of people have not been too happy with it,' Norrie said of Tiafoe's and Jarry's complaints. 'I think it's been in such a big match, they want to win the match as well. So it's understandable to maybe take it personally, but for me, I'm just aiming it at my team and aiming it at some people and some friends in the crowd.
'For example, today [Sunday] was a match where there's some moments with not a lot happening and some of the points maybe not worthy of, saying 'Vamos' or 'come on'. But it was a match that I really had to do that, because those points that don't mean a lot can, if you lose those, can get broken and the match can go away from you very quickly.'
Jarry and Norrie exchanged words after the conclusion of their fourth-round match on Court 1, and the quirks got so far under the Chilean's skin that he even emulated Norrie's excessive bouncing in the tie break.
Some words shared after Cam Norrie beat Nicolas Jarry 🗣💬👀 #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/HKN0eZvcTB
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 6, 2025
Norrie is not one to shy away from a fight on court: 'I want to compete as hard as I can, and I'm not going to tank matches and roll over matches for someone else.
'I'm doing it for myself, I'm not doing it to make someone else feel bad, or not doing it for that. If they take it personally, it's nothing to do with me.'
That might fit a stereotypical Kiwi mould, preferring the louder and 'more boozy' No 1 Court over Wimbledon's prestigious Centre Court and its Royal Box, but a clash of such magnitude as his against the defending two-time champion deserves the biggest stage when he will walk out on the main show court on Tuesday afternoon.
Should Norrie cause what would be the biggest upset of the 2025 Championships, he may finally step out of the sidelines and into the limelight that he has missed out on for so much of his career.