Cameron Norrie claims he is 'the same as Rafa' Nadal

June 23, 2023

ATP Tennis Players, British Tennis Players, Rafa Nadal, Tennis News

Cameron Norrie claims he is ‘the same as Rafa’ Nadal

Cameron Norrie has compared himself to 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal, as the British No.1 shut down the idea of him joining the cast of the Netflix docuseries Break Point.

Norrie is back into the quarter-finals of the ATP 500 event at the Queen’s Club, following his comeback victory over Jordan Thompson, 4-6 6-3 6-2.

Cam ▶️ Quarters 😍
Superb from @cam_norrie to fight back & reach the #cinchChampionships quarter-finals 🙌#BackTheBrits 🇬🇧 | @QueensTennis pic.twitter.com/X7joKrVmy4
— LTA (@the_LTA) June 21, 2023

The 27-year-old has since compared his game to 2008 Queen’s champion Nadal, “I think I’m the same as Rafa. When I’m feeling the forehand line and I’m finding good direction on it and it’s a great shot, you get to watch it fully up the line and you know exactly how well you’re hitting it.”

He added, “I think with a lefty curling back in, I think when I’m hitting that one well, especially on the grass, it’s a good indicator when I’m playing well. So I think similar to Rafa in that aspect.”

Following the release of the second part of the first series of the Netflix tennis docuseries Break Point, Norrie was asked about whether he would want to be part of it.

However, the No.13 did not seem keen, “It’s a tricky one. I think for me it’s more important to keep training as hard as I can and to be known for being a tennis player and a good competitor,”

Norrie continued, “I think it’s a big distraction having the cameraman there full time. It’s great what they’re doing for tennis, promoting tennis, and getting some new fans into the sport and people learning about tennis.”

“But I’m not sure what I’d do. I think I probably wouldn’t do it, but that’s me right now, but I can understand why some players fancy it and why they are choosing the players that they are.”

Despite not putting himself forward for season two of Break Point, Norrie did suggest doing something similar to his compatriot Andy Murray in the future, “But for me, I prefer Andy Murray’s documentary and I’d prefer to do something myself if I were to do something one day.”

Norrie will play his quarter-final match against Sebastian Korda later today, as he looks to better his result from 2021 when he reached the Queen’s final.

Cameron Norrie vs Rafael Nadal head-to-head

While Norrie has compared himself to Nadal, like many others he has not fared well in his head-to-head with the tennis great. However, the Brit did come out on top in their most recent encounter.

Here is Norrie and Nadal’s head-to-head in full:

Cameron Norrie vs Rafael Nadal: 1-4