The crowd at Wimbledon has been searching for their next home ace to lift a Championship at the All England Club. The last time they could express joy over one of their own winning a Wimbledon was back in 2016 when Sir Andy Murray won his second Wimbledon crown, beating Milos Raonic in straight sets.
Three years prior, he became the first Brit to win a title after 36 years at the event when he beat Novak Djokovic in 2013 for his first crown. Nine years have passed since then, and a small drought has been carved as fans are starting to get desperate for a winner from one of their cities.
Norrie and Kartal shine
As we move into the second week of the 2025 Wimbledon, two Brits have stayed alive in the draw.
On the men’s side, it is Cameron Norrie, who has all the expectations on his shoulders. On the women’s side, Sonay Kartal has shown some incredible stamina to reach the fourth round. These are notable runs from the two players, and not many Brits have been able to do this since Murray’s magical 2016 run.
Murray and Johanna Konta had made it to the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively, in 2017. Emma Raducanu‘s impressive run to the fourth round in 2021 was notable. In 2022, Heather Watson advanced to the fourth round, and Norrie himself reached the semifinals. After a gap of 3 years, two Brits in Norrie and Kartal have made it to the second week.
Norrie is now up against the big-serving Nicolas Jarry, who has had a decent record here at the Championships, just like the Brit. It will be interesting to see if Norrie applies the slice tactic to make his tall opponent bend often to win points. The Brit has previously mentioned, on many occasions, that he would like to reach the level Murray reached in his prime.
Kartal will face off against Pavlyuchenkova, who is also a former quarterfinalist at the event. The draw will only get tougher, but if one of the Brits can pass the litmus test, it will be a week to remember for all those at Wimbledon.
Main Photo Credit: Peter van den Berg – USA TODAY Sports
