(Auckland) Britain’s Cameron Norrie withdrew from the Auckland tournament due to a wrist injury on Thursday, less than a week before the start of the Australian Open.
The world’s No. 19 player was scheduled to face Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo in the quarterfinals on Thursday, but organizers announced his withdrawal from the tournament just minutes before he took to the court.
This injury to the right wrist will require a magnetic resonance imaging test to determine its nature and severity. Norrie woke up Thursday with pain in his wrist, but was still hoping to recover quickly enough to play. He therefore had to make the decision to withdraw from the tournament at the last minute.
Norrie, the 19th seed at the Australian Open, was scheduled to face Peruvian Juan Pablo Varillas in the first round of the first major tournament of the season, which begins January 14.
For his part, the American Ben Shelton, ranked 16th in the world, found himself in the final four after having difficulty overtaking the Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena 6-4, 6-3. Carballes Baena surprised the two-time tournament champion, Roberto Bautista Agut, in the second round.
Shelton’s opponent in the semifinals will be Japanese Taro Daniel, who defeated Frenchman Alexandre Muller 6-4, 6-7 (3), 6-3.
Daniel could have claimed victory in the second set, but he proved unable to seal the outcome of the match against the tenacious Muller. He finally confirmed his triumph after two hours and 39 minutes of play.
Tabilo will face France’s Arthur Fils, who reached the semi-final after Germany’s Daniel Altmeier retired while trailing 7-6 (2), 1-0 in the final quarter-final duel.
