TENNIS
Cameron Norrie smashes ball at angry Novak Djokovic in defeat
World No 1 accuses Briton of ‘bending my head’ during their Italian Open encounter
Cameron Norrie immediately apologised after hitting Novak Djokovic in the leg
Novak Djokovic claimed that Cameron Norrie was “bending my head” after a straight-sets victory at the Italian Open was overshadowed by tension between the pair throughout, most notably when the British No 1 hit his illustrious Serbian opponent in the legs with an overhead smash.
Norrie fell well short in his bid for a first victory over Djokovic at the third attempt, losing the fourth-round encounter 6-3, 6-4 in one hour and 29 minutes. He lacked the weapons to trouble the fabled defence of the world No 1, who has now reached 17 consecutive quarter-finals at the ATP Masters tournament in Rome.
The 27-year-old, however, did manage to unsettle Djokovic, particularly with an unintentional act midway through the second set. With a break point to
