Australian Open 2024: Cameron Norrie faces Casper Ruud in third round
Cameron Norrie will need to beat Casper Ruud for the first time in four matches if he is to advance to the Australian Open fourth round on Saturday.
Norrie is the sole Briton remaining in the singles in Melbourne but he has never gone further than round three.
Both survived five-set matches on Thursday, with Norrie coming back from two sets down against Guilio Zeppieri, while Norwegian 11th seed Ruud came through a final-set tie-break.
They will not play before 06:00 GMT.
Norrie, seeded 19th, struggled past his ongoing wrist pain to win 3-6 6-7 (4-7) 6-2 6-4 6-4.
“I think I was making it a bigger deal than it probably was in the beginning of the match,” said Norrie, who pulled out of an ATP event in Auckland to protect the injury.
“I was addressing it too much. Once I switched my focus and my energy towards how to win and how to play and how to win points, I think that was key.”
World number one Iga Swiatek and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz are also in action on day six in Melbourne.
Swiatek opens the night session on Rod Laver Arena from 08:00 GMT against Czech Linda Noskova, while Alcaraz faces Chinese wildcard Shang Juncheng from approximately 03:00 GMT.
Ruud aware Norrie is out for ‘revenge’
In a three-hour match spread over almost six hours because of two rain delays, British number one Norrie also required treatment on his right knee, which he described as a “precautionary” measure.
Meanwhile, Ruud prevailed in a deciding tie-break against Australia’s Max Purcell to wrap up a 6-3 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 3-6 7-6 (10-7) victory in three hours and 50 minutes.
“He’s beaten me a few times in some really big matches,” Norrie, 28, said of Ruud.
“I think a lot of the time was down to execution and him staying a bit calmer than me in the bigger moments.”
A three-time Grand Slam finalist, Ruud has only dropped one set in three victories over Norrie – at the ATP Finals in 2021 – and believes the South African-born Briton will be out for “revenge”.
“He’s a great player. I need to be on top of my game if I want to hang in there with him,” the 25-year-old said.
“I know what has given me the win. He will try to seek revenge and find a way to beat me.”
Two-time runner-up Daniil Medvedev will hope he has recovered sufficiently for his third-round meeting with Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime. The Russian third seed survived a four hour and 23 minute five-setter against Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori that finished at 03:40 local time on Friday.
German sixth seed Alexander Zverev, also pushed to five sets in the last round, takes on American Alex Michelsen, while ninth seed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland plays Frenchman Ugo Humbert.
In the women’s draw, Belarus’ Victoria Azarenka, a champion at Melbourne Park in 2012 and 2013, faces former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko.
