ACE UP HIS SLEEVE
Milos Raonic storms back from two sets down to reach quarter-finals.
WIMBLEDON— Dr. Milos and Mr. Raonic.
Dueling sides of the same player, unrecognizable from each other: One abnormally penetrable on the serve; the other invincible and invulnerable.
If there was a struggle for the tennis soul of Milos Raonic on show court No. 2 Monday, it was the latter who finally asserted himself in a marathon five-set fourth-round match against gutsy Belgian David Goffin. Gutsy enough to square up to the Canadian’s bazooka serve and not flinch. To Raonic’s considerable surprise, the ball kept coming back over the net. If Goffin could get his racquet on it, the return was in there with a chance. At least for two superb sets it was. And for the first time in his career, Raonic came back from two sets down, booking his place in the Wimbledon quarter-finals.
Where he’s been before, albeit never so highly seeded — sixth. Where, despite reaching the semis here two years ago and falling to Roger Federer, he’s never been so favoured as a firmly emergent contender for the ultimate prize, one size 13 foot kicking through the door of the Big Boys Club.
With no Novak Djokovic in his way, like a colossi standing astride the top quarter of the men’s draw. Instead, the American who toppled the world No. 1 over the weekend, sending shockwaves through the tournament. All the survivors thinking: With Djokovic gone, why not me? Why not Milos? Although it would need to be the Milos of the last three sets and not the first two, as the product of Thornhill, Ont., will next have to contend with Sam Querrey, slayer of Djokovic and advancing into the quarters Monday by knocking off unseeded Frenchman Nicolas Mahut in straight sets.
“I allowed him to play too much on his terms,” said Raonic, seeking to explain the cause of 4-6, 3-6 losses to launch the match, with Goffin racking up 88 per cent of his first serve points in the first set, avoiding unforced errors and, quick on his feet, coping remarkably well with the Canadian’s service game, Raonic’s trademark aces scarcely present.
“I was getting a lot of balls in and playing the points and playing maybe better-looking tennis at the beginning.”
Wasn’t working; got dirtier after a brief rain-delay consultation with his grass-advisor John McEnroe, who disappeared from his seat in Raonic’s box in the third set.
“I sort of gave up on that and said I got to play this on my terms,” Raonic continued. “Maybe committed a few more unforced errors but was hitting through the court more, not allowing him to play the way he wanted to.’’
These were all matters Raonic pondered, down two-sets-to-zip, more cognizant than anybody else in the bowl of Court 2 of his record in those circumstances. And that the Belgian had gone 5-for-5 in five-set matches over the last 30 months.
“I had to change something, had to change the way the match was happening,” Raonic related to reporters afterwards. “I was allowing him to play too much, get too much rhythm. The points were too long. He was feeling good . . . I wanted to take that away from him.’’
A dandy time to kill his own 2-set deficit resume, as Raonic started to assert himself, moving Goffin all over the court, mixing up his shots more, rallying for 6-4, 6-4, 6-4.
“It’s the first time for me and probably the most significant situation for me to come back from two sets down to love. I definitely felt good about that.’’
Admitted he’d probably not have been able to pull it off a year ago.
“Maybe I would have had the mental strength, but I don’t know if I would have had the exact same perspective on what I needed to do in those right moments. I think that’s probably the general understanding of myself and my game that I have significantly improved on.’’
Momentum shifted palpably for the sixth seed when he nailed a break in the third game of the third set — after going 0-for-4 on break opportunities in the first two frames. Helped out by Goffin double-faulting and a backhand down the line that went long.
“He gave me a look at that,” said Raonic, “sort of told me, ‘Okay, I can get him out of his element,’ which he definitely was in the beginning. That was sort of a sign that, you know, there’s something to work with here, I’ve just got to exploit it.’’
Goffin looked on his back foot from that juncture on and Raonic started shooting aces out of his cannon, even though the Belgian was still getting the better out of the long rallies. But Raonic upped the pace when he needed to, and a break-aset was all he required in the fifth game of the fifth set, up 3-2, holding serve down the stretch, including a straight-ace game.
When this tournament began nine days ago, a lot of tennis fans circled the quarter-final date as a potential blockbuster match between Raonic and Djokovic. That showdown has vanished, replaced by a completely different mano-a-mano encounter with the co-behemoth — even taller at six-foot-six than Raonic — Querrey.
“I’m not going to complain by any means what’s ahead of me right now,” Raonic reasoned.
“Sam deserves to be there. I’ve earned my right to be there as well.”