British number one Cameron Norrie advanced to the quarter-finals of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, defeating Andrei Rublev in straight sets.
The 27-year-old took just 75 minutes to beat the sixth-seeded Russian 6-2, 6-4 to take his eighth straight win, one of his best performances of the season so far.
Norrie, who won the 2021 tournament and defeated world number two Carlos Alcaraz to secure victory at the Rio Open last month, will face either American Frances Tiafoe or Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo in the last eight.
In the match, which started with three consecutive service stops, it was the Brit who took the initiative and took a 3-1 lead, raising a third time, giving himself a chance to close out the first set.
Indeed, the world No. 12 used all five of his break points as he pulled off a win that leveled his ATP Head2Head series with 25-year-old Rublev at 2-2.
Speaking after the game, Norrie said: “I was solid underground.
“It was a little cooler today so I felt like I had more time on the ball. I played well in important moments.
“Andrey is not an easy guy to beat so I was very happy to go in straight sets.”
