Milos Raonic to face Philipp Petzschner in Quarter-Final at Halle
Quarter-Final Match Preview - Milos Raonic versus Philipp Petzschner at Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany
Milos Raonic will face Philipp Petzschner (GER) in the quarter-finals at Halle on Friday, 10 Jun, at 12 noon local time in Halle, Germany (6 am Eastern Time) on Court 1. EDIT: Rogers Sportsnet will be broadcasting the match live on Sportsnet ONE and on sportsnet.ca (click here for live tennis stream on sportsnet.ca).
We can expect Milos to continue to try and play short points since he is scheduled to play in the doubles semi-final on Court 2 with Dutch partner Robin Haase about 5 hours later (not before 10:30 am Eastern Time).
Video highlights of Raonic's defeat of Kamke (GER) in 2nd round
Video highlights of Milos' 2nd round victory is available here: http://video.gerryweber-open.de/media.1168.2.113.html . On display is some good serving - which is cool in any language - but you will definately get more out of the video if you speak German...
Video of the highlights of Petzschner's victory yesterday over Gimeno-Traver (ESP) here: http://video.gerryweber-open.de/media.1171.2.113.html .
Interviews - Petzschner focusing on Raonic's serve while Raonic still feeling confident and positive about his grass court experience...
When asked about Milos in the post-match interview, Petzschner mentioned (article):
I shall try to get a video tape of his match," Petzschner said, "I want to study where he prefers to serve."
Petzschner mentioned he has used the tactic of studying where players like to serve in the past with success, but I'm not sure how much of a help it will be with potential speeds in the 140 mphs. (full interview with Petzschner here)
Milos said that playing on the grass is special: "Just the way it suits my serve. I got a few more unreturned serves, that helps." He mentioned he has enjoyed the tournament very much and will be putting it on his schedule for next year, health permitting.
He mentioned that he's going to continue to focus on the things he has control over in his match against Petzschner and when asked about the German crowd's support for their countryman he said "I can’t control the crowd. Obviously it’s very important for the crowd to support a national player. I would want Canada to do that for me, to make it a bit tougher for the other guy when I’m playing at home." (full interview with Milos Raonic)
You definately don't have to worry about us cheering for you Milos! I expect we will see unprecedented Canadian support at this year's Rogers Cup.
Despite great performance, Milos is probably not winning over a lot of fans in the German crowd
I guess this to be true because up to this point, more than half of the players defeated by Raonic (3 of 4 in doubles, 1 of 2 in singles) have been Germans. Milos' singles match tomorrow morning will be against another local hopeful, although Mayer and Kohlschreiber are also in their own quarter-final matches, so 3 of 4 of the QFs have a German player - no doubt it's great for the tournament.
Broadcast / Webcast?
I'm not sure whether Rogers Sportsnet will be covering the match on Friday, it is not listed on their online schedule. At the very least, it should be on court 1 so it will have to be streamed somewhere either legally or otherwise... I will update if I hear that Sportsnet will be covering it on TV. EDIT: This just in (via @Tennis_Canada tweet)! Rogers Sportsnet will be broadcasting the singles match live on Sportsnet ONE and on sportsnet.ca (click here for live tennis stream on sportsnet.ca). The doubles match to follow afterwards will most likely not be covered since it is scheduled for court 2...
- WACB
Milos Raonic Update – Day 2 of Gerry Weber Open
A very successful day for Milos in Halle, Germany
Singles Preview
Early Rounds
As reported below, Milos won his opening match this morning versus Pablo Andujar, 6-3, 6-1. His next opponent is Tobias Kamke of Germany (Head-to-Head), who he has never faced before.
3rd Round (Quarter-Finals)
If Milos were to win that match versus Kamke, his potential quarter-final opponents include Philipp Petzschner (GER) or Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP), ranked 71 and 56 respectively. Milos hasn't played either of them before.
Semi's and Finals?
The top seed in Milos' half of the draw is Tomas Berdych (CZE), who is currently down a set versus Ruben Bemelmens (BEL) and are approaching a 2nd set tiebreak... If Berdych were to be upset in his first-round match, potential other semi-final opponents include Viktor Troicki (ranked # 12) or Igor Andreev (ranked # 83). Raonic has never played Troicki before but has a 1-1 record against Igor Andreev, most recently in Estoril on the clay where Milos won 6-4, 6-4 in the opening round.
In the other half of the draw we have last year's champ, Lleyton Hewitt, as well as Monfils, Dodig, Dolgopolov, Kohlschreiber, and Florian Mayer. Roger Federer was top seed at the tournament until he pulled out at the last minute, much to the delight, surely, of many of the other players but much to the disappointment of the German fans and the tournament organizers (link).
Doubles Preview
1st Round
Milos and his doubles partner, Robin Haase of The Netherlands, defeated Florian Mayer (GER) and Rogier Wassen (NED) this morning 5-7, 6-3, 10-4. This is the first time Milos has played with Haase - he hasn't had great results in the past with his usual doubles partner, Nico Almagro.
... and beyond
Milos' next doubles match will be against a German wildcard duo (Meffert / Zverev) in the quarter-finals. If successful, his semi-finals match will be against either the Australian duo of Hewitt and Luczak, or team Butorac / Rojer. Possible finalists from the other side of the draw include Troicki, Kohlschreiber, Monfils, and Brown.
- wacb
Federer and Nadal in the Finals at Roland-Garros
Rafael Nadal reached his sixth final at the French Open by defeating Andy Murray in straight sets yesterday.
It was a close and competitive match that took over 3 hours to complete, but it could have easily taken longer. Murray was playing from behind for most of the match, though he was often able to fight his way back on serve and even had chances to take the outright lead. Nadal, displaying his best form of the tournament so far, quelled any hopes Murray might have had of extending match by keeping his nose firmly in front and playing the big better than Murray.
The biggest story of the semi-finals day was the clash of Federer and Djokovic.
Coming into the match, Federer has been playing extremely well on the clay and was having a picture-perfect tournament. Djokovic had the 41-match winning streak to open 2011 going for him and he was very well rested after advancing to the semis in a walkover. The tennis was of the highest quality from the word go, with both players showing why they are the best returners in the game. Federer lead for most of the match, dropping just one set to Djokovic who was unable to force a deciding fifth set.
Perhaps by ending Djokovic's winning streak, Roger Federer has restored some balance to the universe.
On Sunday, we will have a Federer-Nadal final at Roland-Garros. I will be the first to admit that I would have loved to see a Djokovic-Nadal final, with Nadal reasserting his King Of Clay status by defending his title and defeating the man who beat him in the last two finals in Madrid and Rome. But it just seems right to have Rafa and Roger in the finals again. Especially at the French, where there has been so much debate around the relative greatness of these rivals. Granted, Roger finally got his Career Slam by winning the French Open in 2009, but he didn't have to beat Rafa to do it. Surely, if Roger can claim another French Open title over Rafa in the final there will be little doubt as to who is the greatest of all time -- at least for a while, until we see how many more major titles Nadal can add to his growing collection.
-multi
Final Four at Roland-Garros
Since Milos Raonic went out in the first round of the French Open, we haven't had much to report on. In the meantime, we've been treated to some great clay court tennis during the past two weeks -- and the final weekend hasn't even arrived yet!
On the men's side, the top four seeds in the draw have taken their rightful place in the semi-finals. The preeminent Roger Federer, who reached his record-setting 28th consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal a few days ago, will be looking to prevent Novak Djokovic from tying McEnroe's record for the best start to a season. In the other semi, Rafael Nadal will have his hands full with Andy Murray, who has shown himself to be a formidable clay courter as of late. Murray's 3-setter with Djokovic in Rome a few weeks ago was one of the best matches of the year so far, with Djokovic saving some match points to keep his winning streak alive.
The women's final was set today after Li Na defeated Maria Sharapova in straight sets, and defending champ Francesca Schiavone crushed the hopes of there being a French woman in the final with her win over Marion Bartoli. This is no battle of top seeds, and there have been upsets all along the way in the women's draw. Li Na is continuing to make history for Chinese tennis, and she will have a chance to capture one of the biggest prizes in tennis this weekend. She has admitted that she never thought she could make the semis, or the finals for that matter, at the French Open, but she's proven herself to be a tough opponent on the clay. But Schiavone has the kind of versatility in her game that is highly effective on this surface, and she hasn't been shy in showing her affection for the dirt in Stade Roland-Garros.
-multi
Canadians Qualify for Roland-Garros; Raonic Draw Preview
Canadians Frank Dancevic and Aleksandra Wozniak qualified for the main singles draws at Roland-Garros today.
Two Canadian women began the day hoping to qualify for the main draw. Wozniak was able to get it done in straight sets over Jamie Hampton (USA), 7-5 6-3. Stephanie Dubois easily won the first set of her match against Nuria Llagostera Vives (ESP), but things turned around for the Spaniard when she won the second set in a tiebreak. Dubois would lose in three sets and thus will not be joining Wozniak in the main the draw.
On the men's side, Dancevic won in convincing fashion over his Romanian opponent, Victor Crivoi, 6-1 6-3. Dancevic will face Simone Bolelli (ITA) who also advanced through the qualifying rounds to earn a spot in the main draw. Their career head-to-head is even at one match a piece, but they haven't played each other since 2008.
Milos Raonic, who has been seeded No.26 in the tournament, will play Michael Berrer of Germany in the first round at the French Open.
Berrer is currently ranked 94 in the world, and reached a career high ranking of 42 last year. Raonic and Berrer are separated in age by 10 years, and they have never faced each other at the ATP tour level or in a Grand Slam. Berrer is a tall lefty who has had some success playing doubles on clay, so he may prove to be a tough opponent for Milos in the first round.
Looking ahead, Raonic is in (4) Andy Murray's section of the draw. Raonic could meet Murray (GBR) in the third round, which would be a huge match to say the least. Other names of note in this section of the draw are (21) Alexandr Dolgopolov, (8) Jurgen Melzer, and (11) Nicolas Almagro.
As it turns out, Rebecca Marino and Aleksandra Wozniak have been placed in the same section of the women's singles draw. Marino is set to play Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) and Wozniak will face Junri Namigata (JPN) in the first round.
The tournament itself gets underway this Sunday, May 22. TSN and TSN2 will have coverage throughout the 2-week event at Roland-Garros beginning on the main network at 1PM ET on Sunday. There is also a French Open preview show scheduled for 11AM ET on Saturday on TSN.
-multi
Canadians Qualifying at Roland-Garros: Update
Both Aleksandra Wozniak and Stephanie Dubois earned a chance to play for a spot in the main draw in the French Open with wins today.
Wozniak was dominant on serve as she took out No.22 seed Kathrin Woerle (GER) in less than an hour, 6-2 6-3. Dubois defeated Oksana Kalashnikova (GEO) in straight sets as well, needing a tiebreak in the second set to close out the match 6-4 7-6(5).
The final round of qualifying for both the Men and Women is on Friday, May 20. Wozniak will face the No.9 seed Jamie Hampton (USA), and Dubois will play the No.4 seed Nuria Llagostera Vives (ESP). On the men's side, Dancevic will take on Victor Crivoi (ROU) who is unseeded in the qualifying draw.
-multi
Qualifying for Canadian Women Begins at Roland-Garros
It was another promising day for Canadians looking to qualify at Roland-Garros. The women's qualifying rounds started today, and Frank Dancevic was looking to advance to the third round in the men's qualifying draw.
In what proved to be a very tight match, Frank Dancevic defeated Eduardo Schwank of Argentina, 7-6(3) 7-6(5). His opponent in the next round will be Victor Crivoi (ROU) -- again, the two have yet to meet at the tour level so there is no head-to-head record to speak of. For what it's worth (probably not much, if at all), Dancevic has a slightly higher ranking than the Romanian. Presumably, their third round match will take place tomorrow.
As for the women, both Aleksandra Wozniak and Stephanie Dubois advanced to the second round of qualifying with wins today. Wozniak defeated Jing-Jing Lu (CHN), 6-0 7-5, and Dubois pulled out a win in three sets over Alexandra Panova (RUS), 7-5 4-6 6-2. Heidi El Tabakh was elimanted in the first round by Australian Sally Peers in straight sets.
There are just a few more days of qualifying before the main draws are finalized and announced, which is when we'll see where Milos Raonic and Rebecca Marino end up in their respective draws. Let's hope a few more Canadians can make it through qualifying to join them there.
-multi
Canadian Men Qualifying in Paris
Qualifying for the men's singles got underway at Roland-Garros this morning. Two Canadians, Peter Polansky and Frank Dancevic, were in action today and achieved mixed results.
After taking the first set in a tiebreak against Lukasz Kubot (POL), Polansky would end up losing the match in three sets, 7-6(3) 1-6 0-6. Dancevic closed out his first round match in straight sets against his Slovakian opponent, Lukas Lacko, 6-2 6-2. Dancevic will face Eduardo Schwank (ARG) in the second round of qualifying. The two have never met at the ATP World Tour level, or at a major or in Davis Cup play.
The the qualifying draw for the women's singles won't be released until later today.
Of course, Milos Raonic will be entered directly into the main draw since he is currently No.28 in the ATP Rankings. This means Milos should be seeded in the tournament as well. Being seeded at a Major is obviously a huge deal in its own right but it's also an advantage when it comes to early round opponents, which was a problem recently in Madrid and Rome. The main draw won't be available until Friday, when the qualifying rounds have been completed.
Until then, why not check out Part 2 of the Globe & Mail's 3-part series on The Tennis Project?
-multi
Raonic in Rome
The draw is out and Milos Raonic will play Fernando Verdasco (ESP) in the first round at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome this week.
And so the Raonic / Verdasco Saga continues... Until Raonic had retired during their last meeting at the Estoril Open, Milos had a perfect 2-0 head to head record against Verdasco. But those two matches didn't count according to Verdasco since they were played on hardcourt and, as we all know by now, it's only real tennis if it's played on the red clay.
All joking aside, it isn't an easy draw looking ahead for Milos. Awaiting Raonic should he advance to the second round is No.5 seed Robin Söderling (SWE), who isn't exactly a lightweight. There's also a possible third round match with Nicolas Almagro (ESP), but let's not get ahead of ourselves. Full disclosure: Raonic is situated in Novak Djokovic's (SRB) quarter of the draw. Djokovic came back from a set down to defeat a red-hot Thomaz Bellucci (BRA) in Madrid today, who left players such as Andy Murray (GBR) and Tomas Berdych (CZE) in his wake as he reached his first semi-final at an ATP 1000 Masters event.
The Raonic / Verdasco re-re-rematch will be last to go on Centrale on Sunday, May 8. The schedule for Rogers Sportsnet lists Monday (May 9) as the start of their TV coverage of the tournament in Rome. The finals in Madrid will be on Sportsnet One starting at 12:30PM ET on Sunday, so it is unclear if they'll be showing the Raonic match online or on TV. Who knows, they may pick it up at the last minute or show it on tape delay. If not, just surf on over to your favourite sports streaming website and watch it that way. And if all else fails, there's always the live scores ticker.
Since I don't know how to cheer someone on in Italian, I'll just keep it simple: Go Milos!
-multi
Raonic to play F. Lopez in Madrid… twice
In a quirk of the draw at the Mutua Madrid Open, Milos Raonic will face Feliciano Lopez (ESP) in the first round of both the main singles and doubles draw.
And that's not all -- Lopez's partner in the doubles is one Fernando Verdasco (ESP). The match will be a mostly Spanish affair as Milos, who trains in Barcelona with his Spanish coach, is teamed up with Nicolas Almagro (ESP).
Raonic is not scheduled to be on court today, giving him some extra time to recover from the back injury that forced him to retire against Verdasco in Portugal. There is more good news: Sportsnet One is covering the Madrid Open on TV and online starting this morning at 8AM ET. The tournament is currently streaming live here.
Good luck in Madird, Milos!
-multi
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