Cameron Norrie saved five match points in a mammoth third-set tie-break against fourth seed Alexander Zverev but saw his Wimbledon run end in the third round.
The last British player standing in the men’s draw came agonisingly close to forcing a fourth set on Centre Court but was unable to take any of five set points and ultimately pushed a backhand long to go down 6-4 6-4 7-6 (15).
Zverev is having arguably the best season of his career and reached his second grand slam final at the French Open last month.
Norrie produced his best performance since pushing Zverev to a fifth-set tie-break in the fourth round of the Australian Open to beat Jack Draper, his successor as British number one, on Thursday but remains winless against the German in six matches.
The Royal Box was packed with stars from the world of sport, as has become tradition on the middle Saturday, and the likes of Pep Guardiola, Roy Hodgson, Sachin Tendulkar, Ben Stokes, Leah Williamson and a host of famous Olympic names all watched the action.
Zverev, who had a chat with Guardiola after coming off court, said: “When I saw Pep I got so nervous for a few games there. Thanks a lot for coming, it’s a great privilege. If you get tired of football, you can coach me any time.”
Norrie held his own initially, showcasing some of the improved variety in his game that helped him test Zverev in Melbourne.
But the Olympic gold medallist is metronomic at his best, drilling the ball from corner to corner, and eventually Norrie’s resistance buckled, with Zverev breaking to lead 4-3.
The British number two was forced to scramble around behind the baseline as Zverev dictated, and it was similar story in the second set despite the German suffering a nasty slip in the fourth game trying to chase down a drop shot.
Zverev lay on the ground for a prolonged period clutching his left knee but continued after a brief consultation with the trainer.
This time the break of serve came in the ninth game, with Zverev serving it out before taking a medical time-out to have strapping applied under his knee.
Norrie battled doggedly to stay on terms in the third set, saving two break points and delighting the crowd with an underarm serve ace to hold for 6-5, taking Zverev completely by surprise.
He led 4-1 in the tie-break as he tried to force a fourth set but Zverev fought back to level and the back-and-forth ding-dong continued, with neither man losing a point on serve until Norrie’s final error.
On his knee injury, Zverev said: “I do feel restricted in some movements. I will check it out obviously but I’m pleased I was still able to play.”