RAONIC BOWS OUT
Wimbledon over for Canadian
The thing about lawn tennis is that the grass surface does not surrender much of a bounce. Balls skip and scoot with nary a hop, which is why the big servers do so well here.
And yet, it is possible to slam a racket down on the freshly pressed lawn and have the instrument ricochet all the way into the fifth row, as Australia’s Nick Kyrgios demonstrated on Court 2 on Friday afternoon. It was both an impressive feat of physics and a turning point of sorts for Kyrgios, who up to that point had been visibly frustrated while trying to solve the rocket serves of Canada’s Milos Raonic.
After the racket toss, which came with an angry yell and the requisite warning from the umpire for unsportsmanlike behaviour, the demonstrative Kyrgios dialed back the clowning around and focused on the business at hand.
Soon thereafter, he finally broke Raonic’s serve — only the second time in eight-plus sets that the Canadian had dropped a service game — and then set about peppering the court with his own big serves for a fourset upset win over Raonic, the seventh seed at Wimbledon, 5-7, 7-5, 7-6, 6-3.
“I didn’t want to lose again, I lost to him twice at Grand Slams (last year),” Kyrgios said. “I thought it was a good day. I played some really, really good tennis.”
Raonic was polite in defeat: “He came up big in big moments,” he said. “I thought he served really well.” Indeed he did: The Australian boomed 34 aces to only 18 for Raonic.
For the 24-year-old from Thornhill, Ont., it was an unexpectedly quick exit from the All England Club, where he went to the semifinals last year and was predicted by many to make a long run this season. “It’s disappointing, I wanted to make this tournament last longer,” he said.
The loss leaves B.C.’s Vasek Pospisil as the lone Canadian in the singles draws at Wimbledon. He is scheduled to play Britain’s James Ward in third-round action on Court 1 Saturday. Pospisil was a winner in secondround men’s doubles action on Friday, teaming up with Jack Sock to defeat Eric Butorac and Colin Fleming in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3 and 7-6 (7-4).
Raonic, who had foot surgery in the spring to address a nerve issue, causing him to miss the French Open, looked to be visibly labouring through the fourth set. Afterward, he said his health was an issue. “I’m dealing with a lot of things,” he said, explaining the soreness in the feet — part of the recovery from surgery — led to compensation and then pain in other parts of his body. It became worse as the match went on, he said.
Asked to identify what part other than his foot was a problem, Raonic responded that “there wasn’t a part that wasn’t.?
His fastest first serve in the final set was 127 mph and his average first serve was 116 mph. Both marks are at least 10 mph slower than the speed numbers Raonic typically posts here. He still won the vast majority of his first-serve points, though.
Kyrgios said he thought the difference in the match might have been a tactical decision on his part: He elected to play defence on Raonic’s serve, trying to chip balls back into play rather than attempting to hit winners. The margin of victory was slight — Kyrgios won two sets in which he broke Raonic once, and one that went to a tiebreaker, so perhaps the move to keep more balls in play was enough to keep him in it.
It’s also true, though, that Raonic wasn’t reaching the blistering 140 mph speeds that he was surpassing even on Wednesday, a sign that he was already starting to wear down. “Honestly, I had hoped to be in better shape and in better condition, but I’m just trying to push myself every day,” Raonic said.
It’s a tough end for the Canadian, who when on his game could challenge just about anyone on grass. That will have to wait until next season, now.
For the early part of the match on Friday, Kyrgios was providing a source of entertainment that was unrelated to his play for a loud, partisan crowd. The 20-year-old Australian, who is ranked 29th in the world, would chat with ball boys and girls, shout to various Aussie fans, and at one point backed so far up in anticipation of a Raonic serve that he was almost in the lap of a line judge. (Raonic blasted a 137 mph ace anyway.)
Kyrgios said his antics weren’t a case of lost focus. “I think when I’m in that state of mind, when I feel relaxed and I’m playing around, I think that’s when I play my best tennis,” he said. “I’m focusing, but at the same time I’m having fun. When I find that balance, I play some really good tennis. I thought I was doing that today in the second, third and fourth. I was chanting to the crowd every now and then, playing with the ballboys. That’s a good place to be out there.”
Kyrgios had occasional exchanges with a fan clad in a Batman T-shirt, who appeared to be a useful motivator.
“I thought he was key in the match. He was actually saying some really good things at crucial moments,” Kyrgios said. “I think he helped,” he said, explaining later that the guy wasn’t so much giving specific advice other than urging him to, for example, hit a big serve. Whatever works for you.
He was rather matter-of-fact about the racket ricochet, too.
“I threw it, face down, it bounced over the fence. That’s what happened,” he said.
Kyrgios said he wasn’t trying to play the bank shot or anything.
“Obviously not. I don’t want to hurt anyone,” he said. “It was a good catch by the fan anyway.”