Britain's Norrie beats Basilashvili to claim Indian Wells title
Cameron Norrie becomes the first British man to win the Masters 1000 tournament at the BNP Paribas Open despite three pairs of well-worn shoes he had left on his locker overnight had disappeared, shortly before the biggest match of his career.
This is Norrie's second title in his sixth ATP final of the season after winning his maiden crown earlier this year in Los Cabos.
Cameron Norrie's breakthrough season reached a high point in the California desert with a 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 win over Nikoloz Basilashvili to become the first Briton to win the ATP Indian Wells title.
Norrie rallied from a set down to earn his career best 47th win of the season and is the first player from Great Britain to lift the trophy, achieving what former finalists Andy Murray, Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski failed to do.
Cameron Norrie, of Britain, stands with his trophy after beating Nikoloz Basilashvili, of Georgia, in the singles final at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament, October 17, 2021, in Indian Wells, California.
Amongst top 20
The victory will also propel him into the top 20 in the world for the first time in his career, and move him past Daniel Evans to become the new British No. 1.
"I am so happy, this is my biggest title," said Norrie, who clinched the crown when Basilashvili belted a forehand long on the first match point.
"It has been an incredible week. I was expecting it to be a longer match and he made a couple of errors at the end," said Norrie.
Norrie was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, grew up in New Zealand before becoming the top collegiate player in the United States at Texas Christian University.
He has represented Great Britain for the past eight years.
Cameron Norrie, left, of Britain, shakes hands with Nikoloz Basilashvili, of Georgia, after defeating him in singles final at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament, October 17, 2021, in Indian Wells, California.
Health issues
The 29-year-old Basilashvili was going for his third title of the season.
He has a reputation of being a streaky player capable of looking unbeatable one day and vulnerable the next.
Unfortunately, the Georgian did not bring his A game against Norrie unlike the quarter-finals where he upset second seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece.
Basilashvili said he had some health issues Sunday which sapped his energy in the final set, but declined to go into detail.
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