Cameron Norrie responds after overtaking Jack Draper as British number one

Cameron Norrie has returned to the top spot in British tennis after Jack Draper’s quarterfinal exit at Indian Wells.

Norrie also made it to the last eight in California, where he lost in straight sets to Carlos Alcaraz.

The 30-year-old now holds a two-place advantage over Draper in the ATP rankings.

He spoke about his return to the top of British tennis in an interview with Sky Sports:

Cameron Norrie describes being British number one as a ‘nice bonus’

“[It was not on my radar] to be honest, but it is something obviously very special,” said Norrie.

“It is the cherry on the cake to be British number one, but there are obviously still 23 guys ranked ahead of me.

“So there are a lot of things, a lot of progressions to be made, but it is something cool and obviously shows that we are heading in the right direction.”

Norrie also had praise for Jack Draper’s comeback from injury.

“It is nice to have Jack [Draper] back,” he said.

“I think it’s super impressive to see him, and he is only a couple of tournaments back now.

“For me, with my injury, it took me a while to get match fit and everything, but for him, he is back playing at such a high level, and that was super impressive.

“I know how much and how badly he wants to be back playing these tournaments, so it is nice to have him back, especially for the Davis Cup.”

Draper doesn’t fare well in his record against Norrie so far.

Norrie leads their head-to-head 3-0 and has yet to drop a set against Draper.

Their chances of meeting at the Miami Open look slim after being drawn into opposite halves.

Tennis fans hoping for another chapter in their rivalry might have to wait just a bit longer.

Cameron Norrie and Jack Draper are still well ahead of their British competition

There are only 43 ranking points and two places between Draper and Norrie at the top of the standings.

However, the distance between Fearnley and second place is quite substantial, as he sits 1,031 points behind Draper.

Currently, Norrie, Draper, and Fearnley are the only British men to break into the top 100. The others haven’t had much success on the ATP Tour just yet.

Norrie isn’t far ahead of Draper, but that gap looks like a wide chasm when compared to how far both men sit above Fearnley in third.

The upcoming Miami Open could have an impact on this rivalry. Norrie will face either Alex Michelsen or a qualifier later in the week. Meanwhile, with a bye into round two, Draper is set to play either Reilly Opelka or Nuno Borges.

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