Milos Raonic – Canada Fan Blog an (unofficial) blog about tennis and Canadian player Milos Raonic

Raonic downs Petzschner in 4 sets

Milos Raonic defeated Philipp Petzschner in the second round of the Australian Open, 6-4 5-7 6-2 7-5. He advances to the third round where he will meet former US Open and Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt (AUS).

The serving from Milos was consistent enough for most of the match to keep Petzschner from earning too many chances. However, there were several instances where Raonic fell behind to 0-40 seemingly out of nowhere. All it took was a few missed first serves and a couple of errors for Milos to find himself in a hole.

Raonic broke to start the match, backing it up by holding with relative ease. Petzschner picked up his serve as the set wore on, and there weren't many extended rallies. Interestingly, Petzschner was rocking compression socks for the match. That's not a look you see very often on the tour. Though they probably weren't a fashion statement, but an attempt to stave off muscle fatigue in the lower leg.

Serving for the opening set, Raonic showed some of the finer aspects of his game. He started with a nice passing shot to win the first point, then he hit a blistering inside-out forehand to take the next. Milos followed this up with an ace to take a 40-0 lead. After spraying a backhand shot wide, Raonic put the set away on a very nice cross court forehand winner.

Petzschner found himself with a 15-30 lead on Raonic's serve to start the second, but Milos ran off three straight points to level things at one game all. Despite a low first serve percentage, Petzschner was nearly perfect winning points off the first serve.

Just when it seemed like the set was heading to a tiebreak with Raonic serving at 4-5, Milos went down 0-40 after getting beaten by a lob and gifting Petzschner a few points. Right on cue, Raonic served his way out of trouble and eventually put the game away with an ace. In doing so, he saved 4 set points and kept his unbroken in 2012 streak alive. The errors made their unwelcome return when he was serving at 5-6, and Raonic was once again down 0-40. Raonic wasn't able to save all three set points this time and his unbroken streak in 2012 came to an end. The first serve percentage fell off a bit in the second set, and the ace count left something to be desired.

Not one to waste time, Raonic got his head back in the game and broke Petzschner to start the third. Raonic would earn further chances over the next few games, eventually securing the insurance break to take a 5-2 lead. Petzschner looked somewhat listless as Milos closed out the third set, as though he just came to the realization that the only way to break Raonic's serve was to wait for the Canadian to make a string of errors.

Petzschner continued to appear suspiciously aloof, almost philosophical, in the fourth set. I was expecting him to take off both of shoes and one of his socks at some point. I was immediately reminded of this:

But unlike the Baumer, Petzschner didn't go away and he was soon rewarded with another 0-40 lead on Raonic's serve. Milos made up for his previous loss of serve and put together 6 straight points to stay on even terms. Things wouldn't stay even for long, however, as Raonic was able to break Petzschner in the following game. Service breaks became the norm at this stage of the match and Raonic would get broken for a second time while serving for it at 5-4. But Milos broke back immediately, earning another chance to serve for the match. This time Raonic was able to close it out book his spot in the third round.

Thanks to TSN.ca for streaming the match live for all the Canadian tennis fans. It makes sense that they would show live hockey on TV while this match was going on, but they're showing an encore presentation of the match on TSN2 as I write this. It wasn't a picture perfect performance from Milos today, but he got the better of Petzschner in a tough match and now leads the head-to-head 2 to 1. More importantly, Raonic is through to the third round of the Australian Open for the second year in a row. Not bad.

Now we wait to see which former World No.1 player he will face in the next round: Hewitt or Roddick? And while we wait, why not watch this:

UPDATE: (23) Milos Raonic will face Lleyton Hewitt in the third round of the Australian Open after (15) Andy Roddick was forced to retire due to injury.

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Raonic advances convincingly to 2nd round of Australian Open

Milos Raonic defeated Filippo Volandri (ITA) in just 91 minutes in the first round of the Australian Open, 6-4 6-0 6-2.

This match was played on Court 19 which is not a TV show court. Unfortunately, we were not able to watch the match live and had to rely on the Slam Tracker for real time results. Here are the match statistics:

Judging by the scoreline, Milos dominated the match by winning a majority of his first serve points while breaking his opponent six times. Here's a fun fact: Raonic has yet to drop serve in 2012. The Canadian fell behind on a few of his service games today, but Volandri was unable to convert any of his chances. Milos was constantly ahead in the match. He took the lead early in each set and there wasn't a tiebreak in sight, unlike the recent final in Chennai.

Raonic will try to further capitalize on his gathering momentum when he faces Philipp Petzschner (GER) in the second round later this week. Raonic and Petzschner met twice last year, splitting their matches with Milos most recently getting the better of Petzschner on the indoor hard courts in Sweden. Petzschner also had an easy win over his first round opponent Lukas Rosol (CZE), so he should be fresh for his second round match with Milos.

Who knows, we may even be able to watch this one live when the time comes.

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Milos Raonic defeats Janko Tipsarevic to win his second ATP World Tour tennis title at the Aircel Chennai Open in India, January 8th, 2011

We just saw what was an absolutely amazing start to the season for Canada's Milos Raonic.  He played a long match with Serbia's Janko Tipsarevic, with all three sets going to tie-break, and pulled out the title.  For now, have a look below at the play-by-play I decided to write and update during the match.  A classic match and an indication of amazing results from Milos this year.  Go Milos!

Here's a pic from the breaking news CBC article at: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/story/2012/01/08/sp-atp-chennai-open.html

A shot of Milos during the final in Chennai, India, from cbc.ca

--wacb

Raonic performs in straight sets versus 10th-ranked Almagro in Chennai, India Semi-Finals

First Set

The first break point came for 4th-seeded Milos at 2-2, but it went away with an overly ambitious forehand attempt by Milos and 2nd-seeded Almagro ended the game with a winner and an ace.  The "tall Canadian", as the Indian announcers keep refering to him as, then held at love before earning 3 more break points on Almagro's next service game at 3-3.  This time he did convert, following up with a hold ta love to make it 5-3.  Almagro's next service game hit deuce a couple of times before he held to make it 5-4 before Raonic pounded through the Spaniard with some more amazing serves including one at 223 km/h, the fastest in the match up to that point.  Milos showed again that he can pull out his best performance when needed most.  He succeeded in 92% of first serves and won 86% of those.  He won 14 return points compared to Almagro's 4.  He also hit 10 aces in the set compared to only 2 for Almagro - overall a very solid set from Raonic.

1st Set Stats - Raonic vs Almagro - 7 Jan 2012 (from atpworldtour.com)

Second Set

Raonic came out with a bang again in the 2nd set, including wining his second service game at love to make it 2-2.  The next two service games were comfortable holds as well, as Milos showed no signs of allowing Nico Almagro a chance to break him.  At 4-4, Milos capitalized on a couple of errors by Almagro and blasted more laser-like forehands to get the first break of the second set and a chance to serve out the match.

The next service game was a little shaky on serve, including mostly second serves and a ball toss that got away from him.  On a few of those rallies Milos hit some errors to give Nico 2 break points (his first of the match).  He blasted through the first with a lightening service ace and the second with an amazing backhand down the line.  At deuce, he did hit a forehand down the line a little wide, but answered to bring it back to deuce with another 2 aces to give him adv and match point.  With another unreturnable serve, he put away the second set and the match.

Game, Set, & Match (stats)!

Milos more comfortable holding his service games throughout the entire match.  I wouldn't go as far as to say that Milos dominated the match, but until the last game of the match, Almagro never had any chances to get ahead - it took only 1 hour and 11 minutes to put the match away 6-4, 6-4.

The stats below show that Milos gave one of his best performances today, especially considering that it was against #10 in the world and his buddy, Nicolas Almagro.

Match Stats - Raonic vs Almagro - 7 Jan 2012 (from atpworldtour.com)

Next Up... Janko Tipsarevic?

Milos Raonic's next opponent in the finals of the ATP 250 at Chennai, India is currently being decided on court.  Tipsarevic is leading against Soeda 4-0 in the first set, and up 40-0 in the current game...  So if it's not a final match tomorrow with Tipsarevic I'll be surprised.  Either way, the final coverage from sportsnet, online and on TV, will start at 6:30 AM again tomorrow, as it did today, to see if Milos can win his second ATP World Tour title!

Multimedia

More to follow once posted by the official tournament website...

UPDATE: Here's some of the media from the site.  There is no official video posted yet, but I suspect there will be soon...  Click on the photo thumbs to go to the full size pics on the tournament webpage at aircelchennaiopen.org:

The third image in the top row above is probably my favorite of any of the recent shots I've seen...

--wacb

Raonic loses to Benneteau in Paris

Julien Benneteau (FRA) defeated Milos Raonic (CAN) in an epic three set match at the BNP Paribas Masters today, 6(5)-7 7-6(5) 6-4.

Benneteau was having to play more points on his serve compared to Raonic, but he only faced one break point during the opening set. Raonic was having a much easier time on serve ultimately resulting in the set being decided by a tiebreak. With Benneteau serving at 4-5, he made a costly error to give Raonic the mini-break advantage. Milos didn't mess around and closed out the set on his first chance to serve for it. The Canadian was nearly perfect on his first serve points won during the set, but only hit half as many aces as his opponent.

Raonic started the second set with a blistering service game, doubling his ace count from three to six. In his next service game, Milos took the lead in the ace race after hitting two in a row to comfortably hold serve. Benneteau got to deuce on Raonic's third service game but wasn't able to earn a break chance. Milos returned the favour in the next game, but again the server held without having to face a break point. Serving to stay in the set, Raonic opened the game with two more aces bringing the total to 13 for the match. However, Benneteau was able to take advantage of some miscues from Milos to get to deuce. Raonic regained his concentration and quickly served his way out of trouble to force another tiebreak. This time it would be Benneteau who got the first mini-break courtesy of an error from Raonic. After giving up another error, Milos came up with a great return of serve to get a mini-break back. But Raonic was still trailing with Benneteau serving at 6-5 and he wasn't able to get back on even terms. The French fans let out a huge roar when Raonic put a ball into the net, thus giving the tiebreak to Benneteau. This one was going the distance and all of the momentum was with Benneteau.

It was clear from the start that Raonic wasn't letting up on his serve. He hit four aces and didn't lose a single point during his first two service games of the third set. Unfortunately his third service game was a different story. Benneteau quickly found himself with a 0-40 lead and his first break points of the match. Raonic saved the first two, only to send a forehand long and surrender the first break of serve of the contest. Benneteau consolidated the break to take a 4-2 lead. If the previous two hours of match play were any indication, we would expect both players to continue to hold serve until Raonic ran out of opportunities to break. That's exactly what happened as Benneteau was just too solid on his serve and didn't afford Raonic any chances to get back into the match.

Since coming back from the hip surgery, Milos had not lost to a player ranked lower than him until today. With the loss to Benneteau, Raonic's season has come to an end. The first round upset is a bit of a disappointment, but full credit goes to Benneteau for playing a terrific match coming back from a set down. This match turned on a few key points, and Julien was able to come out on top of them more often than Milos. Both players were remarkably consistent on serve, but Benneteau raised his game at just the right time to get the break in the third set. This was just after Raonic had gotten to deuce on Benneteau's previous service game. It was an incredibly tense match that lasted over two hours and 20 minutes. Benneteau was the better player today, but not by much.

Better luck next year, Milos. I can't wait for the 2012 season! Of course, there are still the tour finals in London and the Davis Cup final later this month but we've seen the last of Raonic on the ATP tour for the year. It certainly has been a great season stretching all the way back to the Round of 16 result at the Australian Open, and we look forward to following Milos in the new year.

Cheers!

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Cilic knocks Raonic out of Valencia

Marin Cilic defeated Milos Raonic at the Valencia Open today in straight sets, 6-4 6-4.

One break of serve per set was all Cilic needed to pull off the win today. Cilic was in control for the majority of the match and was rarely challenged on his serve. Raonic was only able to earn a single break point in the first set, which he couldn't convert. Cilic would convert one his five chances early in the second to stay in the lead and deny Raonic any openings. Milos put up a fight with Cilic serving for the match, but he wasn't able to extend it.

Raonic had a difficult time working his way into the Cilic serve despite the Croat's low first serve percentage. Perhaps the most important stat of the match is the amount of second serve points Milos won, which was 38% for the match and a disappointingly low 18% for the second set. This indicates that Raonic couldn't get comfortable on his serve and had to focus most of his energy on keeping Cilic at bay. He was fighting a losing battle, but did well to keep the match as close as it was. Cilic was coming into the Valencia tournament riding a five match winning streak after the victory in St. Petersburg. That momentum was too much for Raonic to handle today.

Next up for Milos is the ATP Masters 1000 event in Paris which gets underway next week. All the top players will be there as it is the final ATP 1000 event of the year, and for most it'll be the last tournament of the season.

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Raonic loses to Monfils in Stockholm

Gael Monfils (FRA) came back from a set down to defeat Milos Raonic in the semi-finals at the If Stockholm Open, 6(6)-7 6-4 6-3.

Monfils was a little inconsistent in his second service game, which allowed Raonic to earn a couple of break points. But Monfils came up with some clutch serves to hold on and keep from falling behind early. The backhand from Raonic was looking good to start the match, both from the baseline and at the net. After double faulting and making a few loose errors, Raonic found himself down 14-40 to Monfils at 3-3. As we so often see, Milos relied on a few big serves and forehands to get to deuce. He would have to save another break point before getting out of that tough service game. In his usual style, Monfils was covering the court with reckless abandon and went to the ground on two occasions. This match was certainly living up to the expectations. At five games all, Monfils would open up a 0-30 lead on Raonic's serve, but Milos kept his cool and ran off four straight points to put the pressure back on his opponent. On set point in the tiebreak, Milos let a shot go that he could easily have put away. Instead, the ball landed on the baseline and gave a mini-break back to Monfils. But all was not lost as Raonic soon got the error from Monfils to win the tiebreak 8-6.

Monfils was clearly a little rattled after losing the tiebreak, and ended up dropping serve for the first time in the match early in the second. He would have  a chance to break back in the next game, but Raonic produced a timely serve and volley play to save break point. Despite his frustrations, Monfils wasn't going away. Raonic couldn't capitalize on the opportunity to go up a double break, and soon got broken himself after missing an easy one down the line. Monfils was fired up when he won his fourth game in a row, breaking Raonic again to take the second set. The free points on serve just weren't there for Raonic, so he wasn't able to be as dominant as he had been in previous matches. The aces were rare and the first serve percentage was barely above 50 for the second set. Throw in a few errors and you can't expect to hold serve against a Top 10 player like Monfils.

Raonic seemed to settle down at the beginning of the third set. His serve was looking steadier and he wasn't overhitting his shots as much (which is what I think got him into trouble midway through the second set). Monfils was solid as well, looking more confident as the final set progressed. Milos would have another less than stellar service game and was broken when he didn't put some points away when he had the chance. Monfils backed up the break with a hold at love, and everything seemed to be going his way since the latter stages of the second set. Raonic would at least make Monfils serve it out, which he did without too much trouble.

This match was very winnable from Raonic's standpoint. For a three set match, 9 aces for Milos is a little lower than we might have expected (and hoped for). More free points off the serve certainly would have made things easier for Raonic, especially in the second set. But Monfils is not the kind of player to give up those points without a fight. Raonic was certainly able to stay in front of Monfils without running up the ace count during the first half of the match, but Gael's athleticism and overall experience would eventually turn the tide in his favour. I can't help but think of the missed opportunity with Monfils serving at 2-4. Raonic opened up the 15-30 lead and had Monfils on the ropes at the net. But when it looked like Milos had a relatively easy shot to get two break points, he completely overhit a forehand and sent it well wide. That's when Monfils won four straight games to force a third set. From there, it was hard not to like Gael's chances in the deciding set.

It was an impressive comeback by Monfils, to be sure. It's just a bit of a disappointment for us fans because it looked like Raonic had things all wrapped up before paying the price for letting Monfils back in the match late in the second set. It was a great run to the semis for Milos though, which more than makes up for the early exits we saw in the last couple of tournaments.

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Raonic continues to impress in Stockholm

Milos Raonic handily defeated Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) at the If Stockholm Open today, 7-5 6-4.

After a shaky service game to start the match, Dimitrov began to settle down and hold more comfortably. The first breaks points came with Dimitrov serving at 5-5 in the opening set. Raonic painted the line with a backhand winner to take the lead and earned the chance to serve for the set. Milos served up a couple of aces to hold at love and emphatically put the set away.

The break for Raonic came much earlier in the second set. Dimitrov didn't have an answer for Milos' booming serve, who cruised to victory with relative ease in straight sets. He didn't face any break points, and racked up 14 aces during the match. With the win, Raonic advances to his fourth semi-final of 2011. This is already a great result considering the tough first round losses in the last couple of weeks. But the run in Stockholm isn't over yet: Raonic will face either No.1 seed Gael Monfils (FRA) or No.5 seed Kevin Anderson (RSA) in the semis. That match goes later today after the other quarter from the bottom half of the draw is decided.

Update: Milos will face Gael Monfils in the second semi-final tomorrow. Sportsnet has announced that they will be streaming the semi-finals and final of the If Stockholm Open starting on Saturday at 7AM ET. You can watch it here. It should also be airing on Sportsnet ONE, not before 8:30AM ET.

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Raonic through to quarters in Stockholm

Milos Raonic advances to the quarter-finals at the If Stockholm Open with a comfortable win over Philipp Petzschner (GER) in straight sets, 6-3 6-3.

Unlike yesterday's match with Baghdatis, Raonic was able to take the lead early in the first set. Petzschner never really challenged Milos on his serve and wasn't able to find a single break point. Looking at the stats, it's easy to see why. Despite the ace count being relatively low in the first set by Raonic's standards, Milos was nearly perfect winning points off his second serve. The chances just weren't there for the German.

The first half of the second set was a bit of a stalemate. The server was holding without much difficulty, until Raonic opened up the first break points of the set with Petzschner serving at 3-3. Milos converted on his second chance took the lead once again. From there it was business as usual, relying on the first serve to keep Petzschner out of the rallies. The backhand for Raonic wasn't very consistent during the match, but he still came up with a tricky passing shot as the German was serving to stay in the match. If you were watching, you know the point I'm referring to. That shot was enough to keep Milos in the service game, which ultimately lead to him getting the second service break to win the match on a high note without having to serve it out.

This match didn't have the same tension as the previous one, as Petzschner couldn't defend against Raonic's booming serve and forehand. The German literally didn't stand a chance: he wasn't able to earn a break point at any point during the match. Milos didn't make any mistakes on his first serve in the second set, winning 100% of those points. It's a little surprising that he "only" hit 7 aces, but he was so good when landing his first serve in that it didn't really matter. This was really good stuff from Raonic, who gave a dominating performance in front of his father as he watched from the stands with Coach Blanco.

Raonic's opponent in the quarter-finals will either be Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG) or Grigor Dimitrov (BUL). Their second round match will be decided tomorrow, so it appears that Milos will have a day off before he has to play again.

It certainly looks like the headband is working for Milos. That, and the consistent indoor conditions seem to suit the Canadian perfectly. It's truly exciting to see Raonic back on form and getting the wins.

UPDATE: Milos Raonic will face Grigor Dimitrov in the quarterfinals in Stockholm tomorrow.

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