Raonic ousted in quarters
Canadian starts strong but Wawrinka rallies for victory
MONACO, MONACO— Canadian Milos Raonic is out at the Monte Carlo Masters.
The hard-serving native of Thornhill, Ont., was limited to just six aces in a 7-6 (5), 6-2 quarter-final loss to third-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka on Friday.
Raonic, seeded eighth, was playing his first clay quarter-final at the Masters 1000 level but struggled with consistency against his Swiss opponent, the reigning Australian Open winner.
Raonic, 23, is currently ranked No. 10 on the ATP but has lost all three head-to-head matches against Wawrinka. The previous two were hardcourt contests in 2012 and 2013. Raonic played well in an opening set that lasted nearly an hour before getting into trouble in the tiebreaker. He held leads of 3-0 and 5-3 but mental lapses allowed Wawrinka to rally for the victory. Raonic stormed out to a 40-0 lead to start the second set but again Wawrinka rallied to earn the break and take the early lead. “Stan found a rhythm and played more free,” said Raonic. “On the key points, he was really going for his shots. He overtook me and started dictating. “But I’ve done something I’ve never done before (reach quarter-finals on clay at Masters level), so it’s still very positive for me.” Raonic was broken in the seventh game to trail 5-2 before Wawrinka cemented the win a game later. “I was really focused on my serve to be really aggressive from the first shot, to make him move, to make him work every ball,” Wawrinka said. Raonic will try to regroup as the French Open draws closer but found solace with his accomplishment in this clay event. “I have to be happy with things if I look at the big picture,” he said. “I wish I would have done better, but after one week on clay I’m playing well. This week does give me confidence though.” In other singles play, Rafael Nadal lost his quarter-final match to Spanish compatriot David Ferrer 7-6 (1), 6-4.
It’s Nadal’s earliest exit at the Monte Carlo Masters in 11 years. Swiss star Roger Federer advanced with a 2-6, 7-6 (6), 6-1win against No. 9 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France. Federer was two points from defeat at 0-30 serving at 6-5 down in the second set.