HSBC Championships 2026: Fourth seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina knocks out Cam Norrie in first round
• 2 minute read
Former quarter-finalist Alejandro Davidovich Fokina has moved past home favourite Cam Norrie in straight sets in their opening round.
The world No.22 came to life on the Andy Murray Arena as he hit 36 winners on his way to the 7-6(6), 6-2 win against the British No.1 in an hour and a half.
Davidovich Fokina got his grass court season underway with a first round defeat to Mattia Bellucci in Stuttgart last week, but found his feet quickly on the grass in West London. He’ll be hoping to find the same run of form that took him to the quarter-finals at The Queen’s Club in 2022.
The Spaniard will face Frenchman Corentin Moutet following his three set win against compatriot qualifier Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard earlier today.
“Today I played very good," the fourth seed said in his post-match interview. "I played very aggressive I knew that Cameron is very dangerous on this surface and being at home so I needed to focus on every point.
"The plan was to try play more aggressive to him, come to the net and play a little bit of everything today.”
It was the Brit who sparked the action in the opening set, breaking early to move 2–1 ahead. However, he was unable to consolidate his advantage, with Davidovich Fokina breaking straight back to level.
From there, neither player could gain the upper hand as the set headed towards a tie-break. The pair traded mini-breaks, with the Brit recovering one on serve, but Davidovich Fokina ultimately edged it to take the opener on his second set point.
The world No. 22 carried that momentum into the second set, establishing an early lead before securing a double break to pull 4-1 ahead.
Errors began to creep into the Brit’s game, and the Spaniard took full advantage, raising his level at key moments.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina's key stats
- Capitalising on baseline exchanges: Davidovich Fokina won 57% of baseline points thanks to his superior shot quality.
- Thrashing forehand: The Spaniard's forehand quality peaked at 87% - significantly above draw average of 73%.
- Punishing backhand: The number four seed top backhand quality sat at 90% while his accuracy level meant he hit 1/4 backhands to within one meter of the sidelines (compared to Norrie's 1/10)
Norrie threatened a comeback with a break to reduce the deficit to 4–2, but immediately handed it back in the following game.
Davidovich Fokina was firing in the final game, striking a flurry of winners before sealing victory with a cross-court forehand - his 36th winner of the match.
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