Indian Wells: Lucky loser can’t catch a break against Raonic
INDIAN WELLS, CALIF.— Milos Raonic made sure Miomir Kecmanovic’s good luck finally ran out at the BNP Paribas Open.
The Canadian beat the 19year-old Serb 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday to reach the semifinals and improve to 19-4 at Indian Wells since 2014.
Raonic, the No. 13 seed from Thornhill, fired 13 aces against no double faults in putting away Kecmanovic in 72 minutes on a sunny, windy and cool day in the Southern California desert.
Kecmanovic was the first lucky loser to reach the quarterfinals at the tournament since it became a Masters 1000 event in 1990. Ranked 130th in the world, the Serb lost in qualifying, but his fortune soon turned. Three seeded players withdrew before the tournament began, clearing the way for Kecmanovic to become a lucky loser and receive a first-round bye.
The teenager certainly made the most of it. Kecmanovic got by three players, including 30th seed Laslo Djere, to set up his second meeting with Raonic. That’s where Kecmanovic’s luck ended.
Raonic won 88 per cent of his first-serve points and saved all three break chances against him. He will face the winner of a match between No. 18 seed Gael Monfils of France and No. 7 seed Dominic Thiem of Austria in a semifinal.
On the women’s side, Belinda Bencic beat fifth-seeded Karolina Pliskova 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 to reach the semis, ensuring her return to the top 20 in the rankings.