Carlos Alcaraz makes light work of Cameron Norrie as last Brit at Wimbledon falls

Carlos Alcaraz eased into the semi-finals of Wimbledon with a comfortable win over Cameron Norrie. The last Briton left at SW19 was easily defeated by the defending champion, failing to convert any of his five break points across three sets, in one hour and 39 minutes on Centre Court.

Alcaraz won 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 with a brilliant performance that puts him into the final four, where he will face Taylor Fritz. The world No.2 is on a 23-match winning streak and the two-time Wimbledon champion is just two wins away from winning the title for a third successive year. Britain's last-man standing was taken clean out at the knees following a tennis masterclass from Alcaraz. Norrie had beaten the odds to become a surprise quarter-finalist at this year's Wimbledon. But beat the king of SW19? No chance.

By the time Alcaraz had finished with him on Centre Court, Norrie probably wished he hadn't made it this far. The £400,000 Norrie will take home to Monaco will ease the pain a little, for someone who has been in the wilderness for a while.

But no amount of cash will be able to repair the damage Alcaraz did to the ego of the British No.3. The Spanish sensation was sublime from start to finish, cruising to his win in straight sets. Now all we can do is wish Fritz the best of British.

Norrie is no slouch, considering he once reached world No.8 and made the semi-finals here in 2022. But Alcaraz put on a clinic of greatness. He toyed with Norrie, to enhance his reputation as a generational talent.

In fairness to Norrie, beating Alcaraz is currently one of the toughest tasks in sport. The five-time major champion was on a 22-match winning streak, having claimed the Rome and French Open titles on clay, before heading to Wimbledon via a break in Ibiza.

And Alcaraz is so dominant on grass, that the only defeat he's suffered on the surface since 2023 was to a certain Andy Murray. And that was at golf. British No.3 Norrie was the lowest ranked player left in the men's draw.

And he started like someone with little to lose. Norrie blitzed a backhand past Alcaraz to help himself four break points on the Spaniard's opening service game. But Alcaraz saved them all, and it was impossible not to think the missed chance would cost Norrie in the long run.

Norrie faced two of his own in the next game, and handed it to Alcaraz with a double fault at 30-40. The challenge was tough enough, without giving Alcaraz some help.

Alcaraz broke Norrie again courtesy of a wondrous power lob over his rival's right shoulder, to surge into a 4-1 lead en-route to winning the opening set 6-2 in just 28 minutes.

With respect to Norrie, it had taken him less time than this to realise he was in big trouble. The defending champion was in complete control. Forget winning the match, Norrie's immediate challenge was to salvage some respect.

Because it felt like Alcaraz was taking the mick and having fun at Norrie's expense. It was almost cruel to watch at times. In the third point of the second set, he moved his opponent around the court like he had him on one of his racket strings.

Norrie saved a break point on his first service game of the second set, but the pressure was unrelenting. And it took its toll eventually.

Alcaraz breezed through the second set 6-3. He resembled someone who had a dinner reservation for 7.30pm. And completed the demolition job in 99 minutes. Tennis legend Billie Jean King believes Alcaraz could go on to become the greatest player of all time.

Which is quite a claim, considering the astonishing feats of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. But the former Wimbledon queen might just be right.