Raonic sets up Thiem clash
Canadian downs Kecmanovic 6-3, 6-4 to enter semi-finals
INDIAN WELLS: World number seven Dominic Thiem reached an ATP Indian Wells Masters semi-final showdown with Milos Raonic without hitting a ball on Thursday as injured Gael Monfils withdrew.
France’s Monfils, ranked 19th in the world, pulled out shortly before his scheduled quarter-final against Thiem with left Achilles tendon trouble.
Oft-injured Monfils said he’d felt discomfort in his ankle for a couple of days and had been receiving treatment, but the pain was worse after his fourth-round win over Philipp Kohlschreiber on Wednesday night. “I tried a little jog this morning, and I couldn’t really actually push on it,” he said. “Then we taped it. Then I hit a little bit tonight, and I felt that I cannot be 100 percent. I have this pain, and it wasn’t the right choice to play.”
He said an ultrasound exam confirmed severe inflammation, and he wasn’t yet sure if it would prevent him from playing the upcoming Miami Masters.
“Very disappointing, to be honest,” said Monfils, who was enjoying a 15-3 start to the season. “Because I was playing great tennis, feeling strong.”
Thiem is through to the semifinals at Indian Wells for the first time, having reached the quarters once before in 2017.
“I was really surprised,” Thiem said, who was waiting to be taken to the court when he realised there was a problem.
“I’m really sorry for him. Obviously we are both playing well here. He’s having a great season. I’m picking up my form again. So I think it would have been very tough but also a very fun match for us, for the crowd. So it’s a pity,” said Thiem who has lost both of his prior matches against Raonic.
Raonic ended the dream run of lucky loser Miomir Kecmanovic, beating the 19-year-old Serbian 6-3, 6-4.
Raonic, ranked 14th in the world, fired 13 aces and broke Kecmanovic once in each set to keep his bid to better his 2016 runner-up finish on track.
KERBER HOLDS OFF VENUS TO REACH SEMIS
World No 8 Angelique Kerber denied Venus Williams a second straight Indian Wells semi-final appearance on Thursday, downing the seven-time Grand Slam champion 7-6(3), 6-3 in the quarter-finals.
Three-times Grand Slam champion Kerber, who is looking for a maiden title in Indian Wells, will next play Belinda Bencic after the Swiss beat world No 5 Karolina Pliskova 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 in the quarter-final earlier in the day.
Kerber said she struggled to impose her game on the American. “I was really trying, in the first set especially, to find my rhythm and play my tennis but it was not so easy,” she said. “To play against Venus, it’s always tough. I’m happy I won the first set and then could play a little bit better in the second set.”