Cameron Norrie says he copied Dominic Thiem and ate at the same restaurant every day, jokes that it may have helped him win Indian Wells

Cameron Norrie secured his first ATP Masters 1000 title at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells with a three-set win over Nikoloz Basilashvili in the final on Sunday. After the match, Norrie attributehis success to aping 2019 champion Dominic Thiem’s eating routine at Indian Wells.

Norrie said he visited Italian restaurant Mamma Gina and had the same meal every matchday. The Brit revealed that the restaurant had informed him that Juan Martín Del Potro and Thiem had eaten there every night in their title-winning runs in 2018 and 2019 and so, Norrie decided to follow suit.

“I went the first night. They told me Dominic Thiem and Juan Martín del Potro won the tournament here and they ate here every night. So I said I would come back if I win," Norrie said. “I came back and had five or six nights in a row there. The same meal on match days. I mixed it up on the other days.

"I am usually never like that. Maybe it did work this week," he added.

Why did Dominic Thiem not defend his title at Indian Wells?

Dominic Thiem in action at the 2021 French Open - Day One

The 2020 edition of the BNP Paribas Open was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, while this year's tournament was pushed to October. That meant Dominic Thiem held onto the title he won in 2018 for 947 days before Norrie took over.

The Austrian was unable to defend his title at Indian Wells due to a wrist injury he suffered in Mallorca earlier this year.

Thiem had a dream run in the previous two seasons. He won five titles in 2019, and secured the World No. 3 position in March 2020 before going on to clinch his first Grand Slam title at the US Open. However, his momentum was halted by a slew of injuries this season. He sustained a knee injury in April, followed by a wrist injury in June that has kept him out of action for the last few months.

The injury also forced him to skip his US Open title defense. Thiem was initially gunning to be fit for the New York Slam but suffered a setback in his recovery process.

Thiem then parted ways with his fitness trainer Alex Stober. The Austrian said Stober made him believe he could return in time for the US Open, which forced him to rush through his recovery process and do further damage to his wrist.

Earlier this month, Thiem announced that he would not need to have surgery on his wrist. The Austrian will now be targeting a return for next year's Australian Open in Melbourne.