Cameron Norrie rallies from the brink against Cinderella qualifier Taro Daniel in Indian Wells

WATCH: Cameron Norrie started this fortnight at the BNP Paribas Open by playing mixed doubles with Paula Badosa, his fellow former champion, in the Tie Break Tens exhibition.

INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — Here in the Southern California desert this Sunday afternoon, two hours east of Hollywood, the pieces were in place for the continued extension of a Cinderella story.

On Stadium 3, packed nearly to its capacity of 6,270, 2021 BNP Paribas Open champion Cameron Norrie was on the brink versus a qualifier, 103rd-ranked Taro Daniel. Five years ago in Palm Springs, Daniel had beaten both Norrie and Novak Djokovic. One round prior to playing Norrie this year, he’d taken out Matteo Berrettini. Now, serving up a set and 3-1, ad in, an angled crosscourt backhand volley from Norrie flew wide, and Daniel stood two games away from yet another upset.

In the end, it didn’t quite happen. Norrie eventually took 2 hours and 41 minutes to win the match, 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-2.

As much of a viewing paradise as this event is, playing at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden is not always so easy. The ball moves quickly through the air – and extremely slow off the bounce. Often occupying space much further behind the baseline than the early-striking Norrie, Daniel earned his lead with superb movement, consistency and enough depth and variety to keep Norrie off-balance. Having just recently beaten Casper Ruud on the way to the quarterfinals in Acapulco, Daniel naturally was hoping to continue his run of fine tennis.

Norrie is a fascinating player. His game is a case of the product being greater than the sum of its parts. No single stroke is one you’d cite as brilliant or technically exemplary. But as each element comes together, Norrie brings a crisp, angular severity to the court: from the sharp, low-skidding backhand and the rolling topspin forehand, to an excellent serve and many a well-placed volley. Much of this is the result of Norrie’s first-rate work ethic.

Besides being exceptionally fit, Norrie pushes himself to improve. Last month, for example, Norrie passed up the chance to defend his Delray Beach title, opting instead to compete on the South American clay-court circuit. The effort paid off. In consecutive weeks, Norrie reached the final in Buenos Aires and took the title in Rio de Janeiro, his last match a three-set win over Carlos Alcaraz.

But versus Daniel, deep into the second set, it was difficult for Norrie to properly calibrate his mix of spins and paces, precision and margin.

“It wasn’t easy,” Norrie told Blair Henley in his post-match on-court interview. “I was able to turn it around and make it physical when I needed to.”

That Norrie did, often with both added topspin off his forehand and increased precision with his volleys. From that 1-4 deficit, Norrie won the next four games, taking the lead with an elegant forehand half-volley. Though Daniel broke Norrie in the next game, at 5-all, Norrie stepped it up in every direction. He took Daniel’s serve at 15 and leveled the match with an untouchable overhead—not always easy given the slow court and Daniel’s excellent counterpunching skills.

From the start of the third set, hard as Daniel had competed for days now, his presence in the match was becoming increasingly peripheral. The matter was largely in Norrie’s hands. He raced through the first three games of the decider, earned another break at 4-2, and closed out the match at 15 with a 128 mph ace wide. Everything Norrie at last put together over the course of this comeback revealed what makes him so much fun to watch—angles, touch, power.

As Daniel learned today, beware of the wounded bear.