It will be Cameron Norrie vs. Nikoloz Basilashvili in the final of the BNP Paribas Open. It’s safe to say no one had that match picked before the tournament started!
Regardless of what transpired on Saturday, it was always going to be a surprising duo in the championship match. After all, in addition to Norrie and Basilashvili the other two semifinalists were Grigor Dimitrov and Taylor Fritz. That’s right; nobody in the top 25 of the current ATP rankings was a part of semifinal Saturday.
Saturday’s first contest saw Norrie defeat Dimitrov 6-2, 6-4. The 26th-ranked Brit raced out to a 4-0 lead in the first set and was never in real trouble at any point as he prevailed in one hour and 26 minutes.
“I was just going out there and playing my game and making the rallies long,” Norrie noted. “Honestly not once was I thinking about [the final being at stake]. When I went to serve for the match, I was like, ‘this is definitely a big service game here.’ I was a little bit nervous, but I came out and I served great.”
Basilashvili also served great against Fritz–at least when it mattered most. The 36th-ranked Georgian saved all seven of the break points he faced, three in the first set (all of which were set points) and four more in the second. He saved break points in a total of four different games, including two while serving for the match at 5-3 in the second.
Fritz, meanwhile, faced only one break point throughout the entire afternoon. However, Basilashvili converted it at 3-2 in the second set and that proved to make the final difference.
“It means a lot, especially at Indian Wells–which people call it like a fifth Grand Slam,” the No. 29 seed said. “To get through so many matches is very important. I’m at the top of my game now and feeling the best. This was my first time in a Masters 1000 semi-final so I was a little bit tight. I just tried to get rid of [the tension] as much as I could because if I just focus on my game I can play good tennis.”
Norrie and Basilashvili will go head-to-head for the second time in their careers on Sunday in what will be by far the biggest-match ever for both. They previously squared off earlier this season in Rotterdam, where Norrie dominated 6-0, 6-3.
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