Cameron Norrie began his Metz Open campaign with a victory on Monday, defeating French player Valentin Royer. The Briton's recent form includes a stunning win over Carlos Alcaraz at the Paris Masters, after which Alcaraz sent him a heartfelt message.
Despite being knocked out by Shanghai Masters champion Valentin Vacherot in the quarter-finals, Norrie managed to overcome a challenging match against Royer with a final score of 6-3, 6-7, 6-3.
This win marked Norrie's 31st ATP Tour victory of 2025, allowing him to surpass Jack Draper's total for the year.
Jack Draper, the British number one at the start of the year, had climbed rapidly in the ATP rankings, reaching world number four in June after winning Indian Wells and reaching the Madrid Open final.
However, Draper's momentum stalled due to injury problems. A left arm issue kept him out of competition between Wimbledon and the US Open, and ultimately forced him to withdraw from the US Open and end his 2025 season early.
Draper's final ATP Tour win of the year came in the first round of the US Open against Federico Gomez, bringing his total victories for 2025 to 30.
"Draper picked up his 30th and final ATP Tour victory of 2025 when he defeated Federico Gomez in the US Open first round."
Norrie's resilience and form have propelled him past Draper’s British record in 2025, while Draper’s promising season was curtailed by injury.