Alex de Minaur and Cam Norrie offer tennis fans contrasting styles in their third-round match at the Canadian Open. Norrie has solid power, but not an elite ability to move around the court. No player moves better than de Minaur, though, but he lacks high-end bombast.
Still, the match was seemingly going to be tougher for Norrie. He was facing a player who was going to make him hit two or three more shots than he might otherwise need to do. De Minaur chases down everything, and while he might not hit a huge amount of winners, he doesn't beat himself often either.
The best part of Norrie's game, however, is that he doesn't give up, and he would need all that belief against the No. 7-ranked de Minaur. The Australian also likely felt as much pressure to win a match and a tournament as he ever has. His path to the title in Montreal was clear.
Cam Norrie defeats Alex de Minaur in the third round of the 2026 Canadian Open
De Minaur's higher-ranked opponents, you see, either didn't play the Canadian Masters or have already lost. Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, and Novak Djokovic didn't play. Taylor Fritz and Alexander Zverev lost early in the tournament. Felix Auger-Aliassime was forced to withdraw. Only No. 10 Ben Shelton remains among the top 10 players on the ATP Tour.
Winning the Canadian Open would deliver de Minaur's first Masters 1000 title. He hasn't yet won a major, either. The twist against Norrie could cause him to review his career, though.
Norris was in no mood to make things easy for de Minaur, including getting two breaks early in the set, after he was broken in the first game. He was serving well and hit groundstrokes from both wings with excellence. The Aussie likely knew he would get his chance to break back, however, as he is one of the best players on tour at doing so.
After trailing 1-4, de Minaur was able to do more than catch up. He got another break of Norrie at 5-all, and then served out the set. He was fully in control and charging into the second set.
In the third game of set two, the Aussie got yet another break of Norrie, and de Minaur was beginning to serve more confidently.
With Norrie serving at 2-4, de Minaur closed the game with two magnificent points. After a long rally, he hit a backhand winner down the line. At break point, and after a forehand by Norrie clipped the top of the net and just barely made it over, the lightning-fast de Minaur ran the ball down and hit a shot into the corner that Norrie couldn't control.
De Minaur simply needed to hold serve to win the match, but again, Norrie doesn't give in easily. He stunningly broke de Minaur, even after the Aussie had match point. The issue was that he was down two breaks in the second set. Yet, that didn't stop the Brit as he got another break, and eventually took the lead in the set 6-5. The Aussie held to force a tie-break, but he had lost all the momentum.
The tie-break was a bit of a mess for both players. In the first nine points, the server had lost six of them. De Minaur even led 3-1, only to fall behind 3-5. The Australian tied it at 5-all, but lost the next point on serve, and then Norrie held to win the tie-break 7-5 and even the match.
The third set wasn't close. Alex de Minaur was defeated physically and mentally. Norrie was only growing in confidence and form, and de Minaur was wilting. The Brit won the final set 6-1, and the set was brutally ugly for the higher-ranked Aussie.
Next for Cameron Norrie at the Canadian Open is Arthur Fils. That round of 16 match will feature Fils' youth against Norrie's veteran belief.
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