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

The Raonic / Verdasco Saga: Part 4 – Fernando Strikes Back

Fernando Verdasco defeated Milos Raonic at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, 6-4 6-4.

Milos wasn't serving well to start the match. The first serve % was low and he was having a tough time winning points off his second serve. Raonic faced 4 break points against him in the first game alone before he was able to hold. The opposite was true for Verdasco, who was serving lights out. With Milos serving at 1-1, Verdasco earned two more break chances and converted on the second one to take the early lead. Toward the end of the set, Raonic settled down and was having an easier time holding his serve. But he was still down a break when Verdasco was serving for the set at 5-4. Verdasco didn't give Raonic any chance of getting back on serve and held comfortably to take the set. Milos hit only 3 aces during the set.

The serve was looking much better for Milos to open the second set, but Verdasco was still contesting every point. But Raonic's serve would drop off again in his next game, resulting in Verdasco getting the break and a 2-1 lead. Things weren't looking good for Milos at this point. Raonic had an opportunity to turn things around with Verdasco serving at 3-2, but was unable to convert on break point. Verdasco continued to serve well throughout the set and never allowed Raonic to have an easy service game.

The single break of serve in Verdasco's favour proved to be the difference in the second set, just as it was in the first. It just wasn't Raonic's day. With the win, Verdasco levels his head-to-head record against Raonic at 2-2. The Saga continues...

That's two weeks in a row that Milos has had tough opening round matches in ATP 1000 events. Despite going out in the first round in Madrid and Rome, he's had an impressive clay court season. As far as I'm concerned, he's exceeded expectations. Let's not forget, Roland-Garros is just around the corner.

Now time to focus my attention on the rest of the Nadal / Djokovic final in Madrid...

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Raonic loses to Lopez in Madrid Open

Feliciano Lopez defeated Milos Raonic in the first round of the Mutua Madrid Open, 4-6 7-6(2) 6-3.

Milos Raonic came into Madrid ranked #25 in the world, coming off his semi-final run at the Estoril Open. But his ranking didn't prevent him from being dealt a less than favourable draw, having to face Feliciano Lopez (ESP) in the first round in front of a Spanish audience. And let's not forget who looms largely in the second round... some guy named Roger Federer.

It was clear early on that Raonic's serve was going to make a huge difference in the match. The first serve percentage was very high (in the 70s range), which was much better than we've seen in matches over the last couple of weeks. On top of that, Milos racked up a whopping 11 aces in the first set alone. Those are indoor hardcourt numbers, reminiscent of San Jose and Memphis! Raonic didn't face any break points in the opening set, and only needed to convert one point to break Lopez and take the set in just 30 minutes.

It was the same story in the second. Raonic was serving phenomenally. The aces kept coming, and the first serves were making it difficult for Lopez to work his way into Milos' service games. Lopez won the majority of the points off Raonic's second serve. But there wasn't a break point to be seen throughout most of the set. Serving at 4-5, Raonic hit a benchmark with his 20th ace of the match. On the hardcourts earlier this year, this usually meant that Raonic would end up winning the match behind his dominating serve.

At 5-6, Raonic held at love to forec a tiebreak to decide the second set. Lopez earned a mini-break on Milos' first point, but Raonic recovered nicely and followed that up by hitting an ace. But Lopez rallied, and won the tiebreak 7-2. This one was going the distance.

Lopez kept on rolling, breaking Raonic to open the third set. Raonic got all of his first serves in that game, but Lopez was apparently not phased by this. In his next service game, Raonic was again flawless on his first serves and would hold easily this time around. Milos was unable to get back on serve, however, failing to convert the only break chance he earned against Lopez in the third set. Lopez picked up his game and raised his first serve percentage, riding the single break to a 6-4 win.

The back injury that forced Raonic to retire from his semi-final match at the Estoril Open didn't seem to be bothering him today, as evidenced by the soaring ace count and accurate first serves. Perhaps this had something to do with playing at altitude in Madrid. This was a tight, high quality match from both players who each dropped serve only once. The tiebreak in the second proved to be the difference, and it was a surprise that Milos lost it considering how well he was serving.

I guess we will have to wait a little longer for a Raonic / Federer match. Perhaps they'll meet in a major this year...

But if it's any consolation, Verdasco is out of Madrid as well. He lost to Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) in straight sets by a narrow margin. Now we're looking forward to see Raonic play doubles with Almagro against Verdasco / Lopez.

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Raonic retires, Verdasco advances

Milos Raonic retired after losing the first set of his semi-final match against Fernando Verdasco at the Estoril Open today.

EDIT: The 2011 Estoril Open Finals Day will begin tomorrow, 1 May, at 12:30 pm GMT (local time in Portugal - that's 7:30 am Eastern Time) with the Men's Doubles Final (Butorac/Rojer vs. Lopez/Marrero).  The Men's Singles Final matchup (Fernando Verdasco vs. Juan Martin del Potro) will start tomorrow, 1 May, at 3 pm GMT, or 10 am Eastern Time.  According to Sportsnet.ca, they will be airing the final starting at 2 pm ET on Sportsnet ONE (SN1) and again on SN Ontario and SN East at 8 pm, SN West at 9 pm, and SN Pacific at 10 pm Eastern Time.

As for the match, which unfortunately ended prematurely, Milos was serving well and was hitting plenty of winners compared to Verdasco. The problem was that Raonic was also making a lot errors off both wings. At times he looked visibly uncomfortable and frustrated, even after making a good shot for a winner. The set was fairly close until Raonic was serving at 4-5. Before this game, neither player had earned a single break point on the other's serve. Milos was able to save one break point against him, but Verdasco converted the second chance and took the set 6-4. At this point, Raonic approached Verdasco at the net and shook hands. To the surprise of Verdasco and all the fans, Milos retired.

It was a long day for Raonic, having to finish up a long 3-set match against Gilles Simon earlier this morning. That match was delayed due to rain late in the first set yesterday, and was suspended in the evening when it became too dark to play. According to Raonic's comments after the match, he had felt a tightness in his back that started in the morning and got progressively worse as the day wore on. Instead of pushing through the pain and risking further injury, Raonic opted to retire and focus on his recovery. Presumably, he would rather play it safe and bow out of a smaller tournament rather than continue playing and jeopardize his ability to play in the bigger upcoming ATP 1000 events and the French Open. Probably a wise decision. Of course, that's assuming the problem doesn't linger despite Raonic's preventative measures.

Let's hope this doesn't affect the tournament in Madrid, where Raonic has been given a tough draw. He's up against Feliciano Lopez (ESP) in the first round, and would meet No.3 seed Roger Federer (SUI) should he advance to the next round. Bad back or no, neither match would be an easy one.

It's too bad that Milos had to retire, but he had a good run at the Estoril Open. It's always good to get to a semi-final, and he beat a Top-30 player in Gilles Simon (who was previously ranked as high as No.6 in 2009) to get there. Making the semis in Portugal should give Raonic confidence heading into Madrid and Rome, providing the back injury doesn't keep him from playing his best.

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Raonic through to Quarterfinals

Milos Raonic defeated Portuguese wildcard Joao Sousa in straight sets, 6-3 6-3. It wasn't a picture perfect perfomance by Milos, but he held the advantage throughout the entire match and was never really in danger of falling behind at any point.

Raonic got off to a great start, holding at love in his first service game. With Sousa serving at one all, Raonic got the break to take the early 2-1 lead. It wasn't long before Milos opened up the lead with another break to go up 4-1. But in the next game, a string of errors by Milos gave Sousa a 0-40 lead and an opportunity to break back -- which he did on the second chance. Sousa followed that up with a convincing hold, giving the Portuguese crowd something to cheer about. But Raonic still had the single break advantage at this point. Milos got his game back on track and held at love for a 5-3 lead. After Sousa got into a dispute with the Umpire over a line call that went against him, Raonic quickly earned a couple of break points and converted the first one to take the set 6-3.

Things were still looking good for Milos on serve, hitting two aces and holding at love to start the second set. The same could not be said for Sousa, who never really had an easy service game. Sousa dropped serve in his opening game of the second set, giving Raonic the 2-0 lead. Milos kept on rolling, holding at love again to get to 4-1. Sousa was still having trouble on his serve and Raonic broke Sousa again, increasing the lead to 5-1. Milos was a little shaky serving for the match, and dropped serve for the first time in the second set. Luckily, Raonic would have another chance to serve out the match, and this time he would get the job done.

With the convincing win, Milos advances to the quarterfinals at the Estoril Open -- his first quarterfinals at an ATP clay court event. His opponent in the next round will be either No.4 seed Gilles Simon (FRA) or Carlos Berlocq (ARG). As I write this, Simon is currently leading 5-2 in the first set.

UPDATE: Gilles Simon def. Carlos Berlocq 6-2 6-1.

Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that Rogers Sportsnet will be covering the Estoril Open online or on TV. That's kind of a bummer. But there's always the internet...

UPDATE #2: It looks like Rogers Sportsnet will be carrying Milos' quarterfinal match on Friday, starting at (or not before) 11AM ET.

Good luck in the quarters, Milos!

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Milos Raonic defeats Igor Andreev at Estoril Open – Portugal

The Match

Milos Raonic (CAN) defeated Igor Andreev (RUS) this afternoon in straight sets.  The stats for the match were similar for both players except for one important one: Raonic saved 8 of 8 break points and Andreev was only able to save 1 of 3.  Milos has shown again that he's able to pull it off under pressure when it counts.

Milos Raonic's 2nd round match-up versus Joao Sousa

Wildcard Joao Sousa (POR) defeated the other Portuguese Wildcard, Gasta Elias, in their 1st round match yesterday.  With Elias' retirement when down in the 3rd set 5-2, Joao Sousa earned a 2nd round match-up versus Raonic to take place sometime on Thursday, 28 April (timing yet to be posted).

EDIT 27 April: The Milos Raonic 2nd round match versus Joao Sousa will take place tomorrow, 28 April, not before 2:00pm local time (or not before 9 AM Eastern Time).