Cameron Norrie gets into party spirit as he reaches Australian Open third round

Cameron Norrie got into the party spirit at the Australian Open as he kept British singles hopes alive.

The 26th seed was already the last British player standing before he went on court to face American Emilio Nava in the second round after defeats for Emma Raducanu and qualifier Arthur Fery.

There is always a strong turnout of British fans at Melbourne Park, and the close confines of Court 7 coupled with a well-refreshed evening vibe made for a raucous atmosphere.

It was also the type of tight contest that Norrie is well versed in negotiating at grand slams, with the British number two keeping his nerve after an ill-timed rain delay lasting almost an hour and polishing off the three points he needed to clinch a 6-1 7-6 (3) 4-6 7-6 (5) victory.

Norrie, who will have his work cut out next against third seed Alexander Zverev, rated the atmosphere among the top three of his career, saying: “It was so much fun. I think those matches are the best.

“I could see that they had been in for a long day of drinking. Everyone was enjoying themselves. Some of the chants were really, really good. I was laughing. Felt really nice to come back to that court and everyone was chanting my name.”

Like in his first-round match against Benjamin Bonzi, where he won the first set to love before eventually prevailing in five, things became complicated after Norrie got off to a flying start.

He dug himself out of a hole to take the second set but was unable to repeat that in the third against 89th-ranked Nava and a tense fourth could have gone either way.

Norrie had just claimed a mini-break to lead 4-3 in the tie-break when the rain came, and he held on to his service points on the resumption, yelling in delight when a final shot from his opponent landed wide.

“One of the ends was really tough to play because it was a little bit against the wind,” he said.

“I started the tie-break on the toughest side. I was just like, ‘Let me try get to three points here on the tougher side’. Then when I did that, I was like, ‘OK, I think I’m good now’.

“Then 4-3 up, started raining, as everyone saw. I was just laughing to myself. Actually felt so relaxed when I came out afterwards.”

It is the third consecutive grand slam where Norrie has out-lasted his compatriots, with the former Wimbledon semi-finalist Britain’s highest-ranked player in the absence of the injured Jack Draper.

“It would be nice to have more of us through,” he said. “It was unfortunate Arthur couldn’t get through today. His tennis is unbelievable. Hopefully we can have Jack back, too. I’m not really thinking about that stuff too much. I guess it’s a positive thing I’m winning matches.”

Earlier, Fery admitted his breakthrough run in Melbourne caught up with him as he was bounced out by Tomas Martin Etcheverry.

The 23-year-old Londoner has enjoyed the best fortnight of his career, coming through three matches in qualifying and defeating 20th seed Flavio Cobolli in the opening round.

But Etcheverry proved too big an obstacle, with the relentless Argentinian prevailing in a 79-minute first set and then pulling away to win 7-6 (4) 6-1 6-3.

“I’d already played four matches beforehand and I definitely felt that accumulation of matches today,” said Fery.

“I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished in the past two weeks. It’s probably my best result in my career so far and a stepping stone for 2026 and the future.”