Milos Raonic

[Kiefer]

Tutaj niestety te kontuzje odegrały kluczową rolę.
Nigdy nie lubiłem Raona, on też swoje najlepsze wyniki miał dosyć mocno uzależnione od kryzysów największych. Trzeba jednak przyznać i mu oddać, że chłop naprawdę pracował i naprawdę traktował to poważnie i mimo swoich ułomności się po prostu rozwijał. Podobnie patrzę na Kevina Andersona, oj nie lubię go, ale tam olbrzymią pracę nad sobą widać było gołym okiem.

[arti]

[Damian]

Milos Raonic carried over the impressive form from his runner-up finish last week at the Western & Southern Open. The No. 25 seed remained in firm control throughout a dominant 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 win against Leonardo Mayer.

”I had a great week last week. A lot of good things, especially after such a long layoff, but I knew it was going to be very important for me to separate the two,” Raonic said on court after his win. ”I’m happy with how quickly everything has come along. I know that I can play well, especially having the ability to train [while] healthy and prepare the right way. I’m glad the pieces are coming together.”

You May Also Like: Comeback Complete: Khachanov Outlasts Sinner At US Open
Raonic didn’t face a break point and only lost four first-serve points (34/38) against Mayer, firing 42 winners to advance in one hour and 48 minutes. He improved to 13-5 this season and will now have an all-Canadian second-round clash with Vasek Pospisil, who defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber 7-6(4), 7-5, 7-6(3). Raonic leads their ATP HeadHead series 2-1, but Pospisil won their most recent clash at 2018 Antwerp.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/berrett ... 2020-day-2

[Kamileki]

[Damian]

Raonic: 'I've Been Through This Rhythm Every Six Months'

Spoiler:

Canadian draws on past comebacks for his tour return
Milos Raonic is finding previous experiences in the art of patience and perseverance are holding him in good stead in his return to competition, following the ATP Tour’s COVID-19 hiatus. No stranger to the stop-start curve balls of injury setbacks, the Canadian came out firing from the off in his first event in six months at the Western & Southern Open.

The former World No. 3 won his first five matches to reach his fourth ATP Masters 1000 final, before top seed Novak Djokovic edged him in three sets. Despite an early second-round departure to countryman Vasek Pospisil at the US Open, Raonic quickly turned his focus to a reduced clay-court swing.

“First match was up and down, but everybody’s on the same thing,” Raonic told ATP Uncovered of his ATP Tour return. “For me, the benefit of being hurt many times before [is that] I’ve started from nothing a bunch of times. I’ve been through this rhythm every six months… so I knew what I had to focus on, to get the best of me as quickly as possible."

Raonic’s run at the Western & Southern Open lifted him back to No. 18 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, his first time in the Top 20 since 12 August last year. It was his first event since he fell in the semi-finals of the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com (l. to Opelka) in February, and there was little rust to be seen as he brushed aside Sam Querrey, Dan Evans and Andy Murray without dropping a set.

You May Also Like: Covid Cut? Milos Says, 'No Thanks!'
In the quarter-finals he saved a match point to eke out a narrow win against Filip Krajinovic. Then, in the semi-finals, he landed his second upset over Stefanos Tsitsipas this season, having also beaten the Greek en route to the Australian Open quarter-finals in January.

“I worked hard in this time off we had,” Raonic said. “I’m thankful things are coming together a lot quicker than I expected, but there wasn’t a lack of trying. So far there’s a lot to be pleased with, and I hope it’s something I can make the most of for a long time coming.”

The most notable difference in the US was the absence of crowds, which made for a setting more akin to a training session behind closed doors. It did not diminish the importance of matches for Raonic.

“There’s still nerves that come with it,” he said. “You’re not sure how you’re going to step out and play that first match, that first set, that first game.

“There’s a lot that can go wrong quickly, but you just focus on yourself and understand the other guy could be on the same ship as you and try to control the little things as much as possible. I just put in a lot of hard work and I think it allowed every single aspect of my game to improve just a bit. I hope it continues improving.”

Raonic is the No. 13 seed at this week’s Internazionali BNL d'Italia. He will team up with compatriot, #NextGenATP star Felix Auger Aliassime, in doubles before he begins his 15th Roland Garros campaign.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/raonic- ... rview-2020

[arti]

[Damian]

Raonic Blasts 21 Aces In St. Petersburg Win

Spoiler:

Khachanov advances on home soil
Sixth seed and 2015 champion Milos Raonic struck 21 aces on Tuesday and saved five set points at 4-5 in the first set en route to a 7-6(5), 6-1 victory over American qualifier J.J. Wolf in the first round of the St. Petersburg Open.

The Canadian needed one hour and 40 minutes to earn his 15th match win of the season. Less than two months ago, the former World No. 3 showed impressive form to reach the Western & Southern Open final (l. to Djokovic). He will next play Alexander Bublik, who hit 25 aces in his own first-round victory Monday.

Raonic is competing in St. Petersburg for the first time since 2016. He is now 5-1 at the tournament and four of his triumphs have come in straight sets.

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The highest seed in Raonic's quarter is fourth seed Karen Khachanov, who eased past Aussie James Duckworth 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 17 minutes. The Russian is seeking his second ATP Tour title on home soil after lifting the Moscow trophy two years ago.

Khachanov, who only lost serve once in his win, will play Russian wild card Aslan Karatsev, who is 15-1 on the ATP Challenger Tour since tennis restarted in August.

Borna Coric, who finished runner-up to Daniil Medvedev in last year’s St. Petersburg Open final, was rock solid on serve Tuesday when he defeated Feliciano Lopez of Spain 6-3, 7-6(2) in one hour and 36 minutes. The seventh-seeded Croatian struck 12 aces and lost only nine of his service points (45/54). Coric will now play Russian wild card Roman Safiullin or lucky loser Emilio Gomez of Ecuador.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/raonic- ... 20-tuesday

[Kamileki]

[Kamileki]

[Damian]

Coric To Face Raonic In St. Petersburg Semi-finals

Spoiler:

Croatian owns 6-2 record in St. Petersburg

After a slow start, Borna Coric raised his game to beat Reilly Opelka 7-6(3), 6-3 and return to the St. Petersburg Open semi-finals on Friday.

Last year’s runner-up trailed 2-5 in the first set and saved three set points at 3-5 by moving up the court with aggression, before turning the tables on his opponent. Coric converted both break points he created and withstood 16 aces to reach his second semi-final this season.

“In the first set, I didn’t start very good,” said Coric in an on-court interview. “I was very nervous coming into the match. I didn’t know what to expect… I was not playing good and then I obviously found my rhythm and started to play much better. I started to read his serve a little bit as well and on my serve, I was very solid.”

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Coric will aim to improve his 6-2 record at the ATP 500 when he faces 2015 champion Milos Raonic for a place in the final. The Croatian lost his only previous match against the Canadian at the 2017 Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com.

“Against Milos, one of the best servers on the Tour, it is not going to be an easy match,” said Coric.

After a dominant first set, the Western & Southern Open runner-up served 15 aces and won 23 of 25 first-serve points in a competitive second set to defeat home favourite Karen Khachanov 6-1, 7-6(1) in 86 minutes. Through his opening three matches, Raonic has held all 29 of his service games and saved all 10 break points he has faced.

“It was a great match for me,” said Raonic in an on-court interview. “From the beginning, I knew it was going to be tough. I knew I was going to have to bring my best tennis and I did from the start of the match. I think that really helped me a lot and I am just happy with my level overall.”

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/coric-k ... 020-friday

[Damian]

This Is What Raonic Thinks About The Greatest Of All-Time Debate...

Spoiler:

Canadian is into the St. Petersburg semi-finals
When Rafael Nadal tied Roger Federer’s record of 20 Grand Slam titles last Sunday by triumphing at Roland Garros, fans and analysts once again began debating who the best player in history is. After reaching the St. Petersburg Open semi-finals on Friday, former World No. 3 Milos Raonic said there is no simple answer.

“I think it’s hard to debate it now because there are a lot of open-ended things,” Raonic said. “You have Rafa who’s going to be around to play more tennis. We have Roger who’s going to be coming back next year to play more tennis. You have Novak who’s maybe got age on his side and has been definitely the healthiest of them, especially over the past few years.

“It’s not only about Grand Slams. Weeks at No. 1 matter, head-to-head results against each other, those matter. How many times you win each Grand Slam, that matters, how many Masters series you win, there’s a lot. There is always going to be an argument about who is the greatest of all-time.”

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As Raonic said, there is no clear-cut metric. Federer and Nadal are tied for the most majors (20), Federer has the most tour-level titles of the trio (103) and if Djokovic maintains World No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings through 8 March 2021, he will eclipse Federer for the most weeks at top spot.

If nothing else, it’s exciting to watch three legends competing at the same time, pushing each other to even greater heights.

“I think we are very lucky to be able to have that argument all in the same generation where you can compare these guys rather than comparing some players from now to players from 20 years ago or to players from 40 years ago,” Raonic said. “It’s really a pleasure to have the guys in front of you all at the same time so that you can have this comparison.”

Raonic has earned three wins against Federer (3-11) and two victories against Nadal (2-8). He is still pursuing his first triumph against Djokovic (0-11). But more than anything else, the Canadian is impressed by what the ‘Big Three’ has accomplished, with Nadal’s 13th Coupe des Mousquetaires being the latest achievement on a long list.

“It’s incredible what Rafa has done, to win the tournament 13 times in 16 years,” Raonic said. “Before these three guys started, the Grand Slam record was 14. He has a good chance to have 14 at one event, so who would have thought that was possible?”

Raonic plays Borna Coric on Saturday for a spot in the St. Petersburg final.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/raonic- ... ee-feature

[Kamileki]

[Damian]

Raonic Solid On Serve In Paris

Spoiler:

Canadian to face Herbert in second round

Milos Raonic produced a clinical serving performance on Tuesday to book his place in the Rolex Paris Masters second round.

The 2014 runner-up dropped just six points on serve (37/43) to move past Aljaz Bedene 6-3, 6-2 in 63 minutes. Raonic, who owns a 12-5 record at the ATP Masters 1000, broke serve on three occasions to extend his unbeaten ATP Head2Head record against Bedene to 5-0.

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This is the second time in three weeks that Raonic has defeated Bedene in a first-round match. At last month’s European Open in Antwerp, Raonic overcame the Slovenian 6-3, 7-6(4) en route to the quarter-finals.

Raonic will face home favourite Pierre-Hugues Herbert for a spot in the third round. The Frenchman recovered from a set down to beat Tennys Sandgren 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(4).

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/berrett ... 20-tuesday

[Kamileki]

[Kamileki]

[arti]

[arti]

[Damian]

Raonic Saves 2 MPs, Hits 25 Aces To Reach Paris Semi-finals

Spoiler:

Canadian survives 30-shot rally on one match point to move on
Milos Raonic was as close as you can get to defeat on Friday at the Rolex Paris Masters, but the former World No. 3 found a way to win.

Raonic saved two match points to battle past home favourite Ugo Humbert 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(7) after two hours and 19 minutes. The Canadian was unrelenting in a 30-shot rally on the Frenchman’s serve to save the first of those match points, clawing into the Paris-Bercy semi-finals for the third time.

"I wouldn't necessarily say that that match point is the way I want to be playing too many points that I saved in that long rally. But I just tried to stick with it as much as possible, tried to find a way through and got a bit fortunate, hit a few balls close to the line," Raonic said. "Today it turned my way, but I've just got to keep plugging away. Doesn't necessarily mean it always will, but at least give it a chance for it to turn around."

One of the best servers of his generation, Raonic lost his first three service points of the final-set tie-break, including a surprising double fault long, to fall behind 1/5. Humbert put on his track shoes to track down one attacking shot after the other on his first match point at 6/4, but Raonic ultimately put away a forehand volley. He swatted away the next match point with a booming serve down the T.

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Although Humbert once again showed his heart by playing tremendous defence on the first match point he faced at 6/7, it was not enough. Raonic crushed his 25th ace of the match to advance to the last four, in which he will play Daniil Medvedev, who eased past Diego Schwartzman earlier in the day.

"The past few weeks he's played well. I think he just needs the consistency," Raonic said of Humbert. "He's not an easy guy to play, by any means. I think with maturity, and he's playing the right way, I think he can continue to move up much more."

It was a scrappy performance throughout for Raonic, who was close to letting slip his grip on the match multiple times. After losing the second set, the 2014 finalist faced 0/40 on his serve to start the decider. But the 10th seed kept his composure against an inspired Humbert, riding his first serve to victory.

"It was looking a little dark for me at the beginning, triple break point at the beginning [of the third set]," Raonic said. "But then I created some opportunities. It kept me around. And it's something that [has] happened maybe too many times before, that things have slipped because I haven't taken that step forward mentally. And I just tried to do something better today."

Humbert showed no fear competing in his first ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final. The lefty, who won his first two ATP Tour titles earlier this year, played attacking tennis and had a spot in the semi-finals on his racquet. But on the key points, it was Raonic who controlled the action.

The 29-year-old will try to reach his second Masters 1000 final of the year after making the championship match at the Western & Southern Open in New York. Raonic owns an 0-2 ATP Head2Head record against Medvedev.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/raonic- ... is-2020-qf

[Barty]

[DUN I LOVE]

Tak broni piłki meczowej Miłosz Raonicz.