Tiafoe beats former champ Norrie to reach Indian Wells semis

American Frances Tiafoe reached the first ATP Masters 1000 semi-final of his career on Wednesday, downing former champion Cameron Norrie 6-4, 6-4 to make the last four at Indian Wells.

Tiafoe, ranked 16th in the world, hasn’t dropped a set in the combined WTA and Masters 1000 event in the California desert.

Unfazed by a rain-disrupted start, Tiafoe played stylish, attacking tennis to notch his biggest win of the season in an hour and 25 minutes.

“It’s great, but it’s the semis,” Tiafoe said. “The job’s not done.”

Tiafoe will face either sixth-ranked Daniil Medvedev or number 28 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina for a place in the final.

Sixth-ranked Medvedev, coming off three straight ATP titles at Rotterdam, Doha and Dubai, beat Alexander Zverev in the fourth round on Tuesday despite badly rolling his right ankle in the second set.

Tiafoe had broken Norrie twice in the second set to serve for the match at 5-2.

He was broken himself, but made no mistake, however, at his next opportunity. His biggest serve of the match put him up 40-0 as he closed it out in style.

“I am really happy,” Tiafoe said. “I feel like when I am there mentally, I am one of the best players in the world.

“Today it is not just about getting to the semis, I am happy to beat a guy like that, who has been playing so well. To be able to come out here and beat him in straight sets, is relatively comfortable.

“At the end, it got a little tricky, but it was pretty one-way traffic and I am really happy with where my game is at.”

Britain’s Norrie, who won his biggest title at Indian Wells in 2021, saw his eight-match win streak end. The run had included his victory over Carlos Alcaraz in the Rio de Janeiro final last month.

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