Cameron Norrie’s Paris Masters dreams ended by Shanghai champion Valentin Vacherot | Tennis news
Cameron Norrie was unable to build on his sensational victory over Carlos Alcaraz as he was knocked out of the Paris Masters by Monaco’s Valentin Vacherot on Thursday.
Vacherot won against British number 2 Norrie 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to extend his Masters 1000 winning streak to 10 matches.
The 26-year-old, who scored a shock victory over his cousin Arthur Rinderknech in the Shanghai Masters final earlier this month, beat Jiri Lehecka before winning his rematch against Rinderknech on Wednesday.
Vacherot continued his momentum by beating Norrie, who entered the match. having stunned world number 1 Alcaraz 4-6 6-3 6-4.
Norrie dominated most of the stats, but it was his opponent who took his chances in the big moments.
The British number 2 was unable to take any of the five break points, while Vacherot took the only opportunity he had and crossed the finish line despite losing four points in total.
“It was a very big performance, it was my best match,” said Vacherot. “I won more easily against Lehecka in the first round. Cam was really tough today. He makes you hit a ton of balls. He makes you run and you have to be very aggressive if you want to win.
“I’m really proud of the way I handled the heated moments of the match and we continue.”
When asked where he was during all this time, Vacherot added: “I trained, I tried, I worked, everything possible. It’s all working now after many, many years of work. Pure work. I never thought it would pay off like this.”
Tale of the gang
Who is Valentin Vacherot?
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Highlights of the Shanghai Masters final between Valentin Vacherot and Arthur Rinderknech
The 26-year-old, ranked 204th in the world before his triumph at the Shanghai Masters, is now 30th in the live rankings.
He scored a superb victory against Rinderknech in China in qualifyingto win the biggest title of his career and £824,000 in prize money, becoming the lowest-ranked ATP Masters 1000 champion since 1990.
Vacherot’s journey to the title included victories over Alexander Bublik, Holger Rune and Novak Djokovic.
He traveled the American college tennis route from 2016 to 2020, representing Texas A&M University, where he also earned a business degree before returning to the professional circuit in 2021.
Race to Turin
There are three places left to gain after Taylor Fritz qualified on Wednesday.
Ben Shelton and Alex de Minaur control their own destiny with Lorenzo Musetti, Felix Auger-Alisassime and Daniil Medvedev among the chasing pack hoping to make a late surge in Turin.
Watch ATP and WTA Tour Finals, live on Sky Sports or stream with NOW and the Sky Sports app, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50% more live sport this year, at no extra cost. Learn more here.
