"Emma Raducanu was stealing most of the spotlight from me; the media in London were asking me more questions about Emma than myself" - Cameron Norrie
Speaking to Matt Brown on the latest episode of the Tennis Talk podcast, Cameron Norrie talked about life as a tennis player in Great Britain after Emma Raducanu won the 2021 US Open. The World No. 12 said that Raducanu stole all the limelight following her historic triumph.
He further added, in good humor, that the media in his home country bombarded all his press conferences with questions about the teenage sensation instead of himself.
The 26-year-old, however, did not begrudge the World No. 18 her new-found success, and referred to the experience with fondness.
"Emma Raducanu was stealing most of the spotlight from me, which I don't mind," Norrie said. "I remember coming back to London and I was doing a bunch of media stuff and they were just asking me more questions about Emma than about myself. I was in the backseat when it came to the spotlight."
Cameron Norrie gave the credit for his triumphant 2021 season to Emma Raducanu
The World No. 12 gave credit to Emma Raducanu for the exceptional second half of his own 2021 season. He said that Raducanu's incredible achievement was an inspiration for him.
Raducanu became the first player to win the US Open as a qualifier and also became the first British woman since Virginia Wade in 1977 to win a Grand Slam Singles title. The US Open was only her second appearance at a Major. Raducanu won the title without dropping a single set.
Norrie revealed that seeing someone like Emma Raducanu with whom he used to train achieve such a feat ignited a fire in him as well. This led to the Brit turning his season around.
"It was incredible to see what Emma Raducanu did at the 2021 US Open. The fashion in which she [won the US Open] and absolutely whacked everyone in straight sets, it was great to see," Norrie said. "I was training around Emma and seeing her in London. Seeing her result like that, I thought, "Why can't someone like me or anyone [do the same]? It was a pretty quick turnaround after the US Open for me.
Cameron Norrie's total ATP wins in 2021: 50
Cameron Norrie's total career ATP wins: 101
In other words, he has nearly doubled his career ATP wins this year. Crazy, crazy season.
Norrie rose from World No. 74 at the beginning of 2021 to World No. 29 before the start of the US Open. Following a premature exit from the tournament in the first round, he reached the finals at the San Diego Open and went one step further at Indian Wells, where he won his second ever ATP Tour title.
The win made him the British No. 1 and also pushed him into the running for a place in the 2021 ATP Tour Finals as the second alternate. When Stefanos Tsitsipas withdrew from the tournament due to an injury, Cameron Norrie made his debut at the event.