Following his momentous triumph against Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday, Cameron Norrie has taken some time to watch Valentin Vacherot.
Norrie recorded possibly the biggest win of his career on Tuesday, defeating world number one Alcaraz 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the Paris Masters second round.
Norrie, the world number 31, will face Valentin Vacherot next. Vacherot, who became the lowest-ranked Masters 1000 champion after capturing the Shanghai Masters title earlier this month, defeated Arthur Rinderknech in his Paris Masters second-round match.
Vacherot is in red-hot form, having won 11 of his past 12 matches [including qualifying] on the ATP Tour.
The Monegasque represents a stern test for Norrie, who commented on his third round opponent after watching his second round match on Wednesday.
Cameron Norrie says Valentin Vacherot is ‘playing the best tennis of his life’
During a conversation with Sky Sports, Norrie discussed how he has been managing his time after defeating Alcaraz on Tuesday.
Norrie said: “It’s been pretty good, just tried to stay off my phone as much as I can, just played some cards with my team.
“Had a quick practice today, was feeling the ball pretty good, so didn’t have to do too much. But just try to relax a little bit, and I’ve still got the tournament to play, the tournament is just starting, so I have to be ready for the next match tomorrow.”
“Last night it was quite difficult to get some sleep; there were a lot of messages, a lot of adrenaline. I just tried to sleep as much as I could, and I feel a little bit hungover from yesterday, but in a good way.
“A lot of energy this morning, but like I said, it’s a great win, but you need to bring it back, and there’s no time to be thinking about how good the win was, just let it go, take the positives from that, take the confidence, and go and attack the next guy.”
Norrie then discussed his next Paris Masters opponent – Valentin Vacherot. Norrie and Vacherot have never played each other before on the ATP Tour.
Norrie continued: “I watched the end of it [Vacherot/Rinderknech]. It was a battle, both of those guys really wanted to win. It was a huge match for both of them.
“[Valentin] Vacherot is so impressive, so confident right now, hitting winners, returning well, backhand is not missing. I watched his first round against [Jiri] Lehecka; he played probably the match of his life.
“He’s playing the best tennis of his life, for sure. For me, I’m going to have to play my best to have a chance with him, because his form has been incredible.”
He added: “Playing Vacherot or Alcaraz, or whoever, I just want to bring the same energy. Compete as hard as I can.
“I know I’m playing great tennis, just keep in perspective, another day, anything can happen.
“I’m going to take it to Vacherot, he’s probably the favorite right now, he’s playing so good and he looks unstoppable, so I’m going to take it to him.”
The winner of Norrie and Vacherot will face either Felix Auger-Aliassime or Daniel Altmaier in the quarter-finals.
In the second round, Altmaier shocked former world number Casper Ruud, while Auger-Aliassime battled through a tough three-set contest against France’s Alexandre Muller.
Can Vacherot win back-to-back Masters 1000 titles?
Valentin Vacherot is undoubtedly a strong contender for the Paris Masters title.
His Shanghai Masters success was no flash in the pan, as proven by his dominant victory against Jiri Lehecka and his comeback triumph against Rinderknech.
Vacherot’s one loss in his last 12 matches came against world number four Taylor Fritz, who was pushed to three sets by the Monegasque player.
Furthermore, Carlos Alcaraz’s loss to Cameron Norrie on Tuesday has handed Vacherot the perfect opportunity to capitalise. The highest-ranked players in his half of the draw are now Taylor Fritz, Alex de Minaur and Felix Auger-Aliassime.
In the past month, Vacherot has beaten Novak Djokovic, Holger Rune and Alexander Bublik – he knows how to beat the best players on the ATP Tour, and his experiences of triumphing against these types of players will serve him well for the remainder of his time in Paris.
