TENNIS WIMBLEDON 2014 – 28th of June. M. Raonic d. L. Kubot 7-6, 7-6, 6-2. An interview with Milos Raonic
Q. Did you get to him today? Double fault at a couple key times and seemed like you kept the pressure up.
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it paid off sort of. I don’t think there is really a match that I would say to this point, especially in a Grand Slam, that I was able to be as dominant as I was on my serve. Only lost nine points on my serve, I think.
That definitely makes my life a lot easier and puts pressure on him. Also, at the same time, I didn’t really have my opportunities.
Played a few good points in tiebreaks and he was able to sort of hold on. Serving the way he serves, he was going 115 out wide on most second serves. I was sort of just hoping it would come together at one point.
Q. Can you tell us a little bit about the difficulty with a rain delay and how you manage that.
MILOS RAONIC: Well, the only difficulty really is making sure that you start out 100% and managing when you’re going to go out. They kept delaying by no more than a half hour each time today. One time maybe 45 minutes.
So by the time you get taped up and everything, takes about 45 minutes to do that alone to get ready for a match, so always you have to be on the edge of your feet.
There was one point where I sort of the said today I don’t think there is going to be any play today and I was able to take a nap in the massage room and sort of just stay calm and wait it out.
Q. Did you mean any play today or for three or four hours or something?
MILOS RAONIC: No, for a period of time. Around 3:00, from what I was hearing, the rain wouldn’t really stop until 6:00.
I got coaches in the locker room anyway, but I sort of took, let’s say, a safe gamble and took a nap.
Q. How would you say your comfort level is on grass now compared to when you first played here? Do you think you still have some way to go before you’re as comfortable as you might become on this surface?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I think each time around I’m getting better on it. But I feel much more comfortable than the first time. When I first played here I was playing well because everything was quite new to me. There was no pressure. I was able to play much more freely. No pressure from myself.
I was sort of learning on the go and I was just feeling good from the start of that year. Really starting in Australia. Every result I was making was helping my ranking go up. There wasn’t really much that could sort of bring me down. Everything was helping me go forward.
Then I got hurt here. Because of that, I sort of lost the next year on this surface. Last year I just struggled finding my tennis. Just not only on grass, but on the tournaments before.
So this time around I think I’m starting from very low comfort and feeling pretty comfortable. So I feel like this year I’ve made pretty significant progress on this surface.
Q. Has something clicked on grass, or is it just familiarity with the surface?
MILOS RAONIC: Familiarity is the biggest thing I would say, but also just an understanding I found. I can’t say click because it wasn’t me going into it sort blindsided, not knowing what I have to do and figured it out by hitting one shot.
It was through every practice we were sort of working away on an objective and then it came together. I think I’ve played better and better each match.
Q. What rituals or superstitions do you have before and during a match?
MILOS RAONIC: I think I go about sort of the same routine, but I think it’s just because I’m a person of routine. I always prepare the same way, go out at the same time. I like to have two hours before. There is not really specific things I eat. I sort of follow up with my nutritionist on what to eat depending on what time in the day I play.
I used to have more of that, but I stepped away from it quite a bit. Just understanding that you got to go out on court, be ready to put it all out there, and if need be, suffer. Those other things are not going to guarantee you a win. So I just go about doing things that I need to best prepare as possible.
Q. People point to Nadal for having a whole litany of things he does between points. What do you do, if anything?
MILOS RAONIC: I take more time. Take a few deep breaths, especially in important moments. Always bounce the ball when I’m serving an even number of times. Probably not as noticeable as Rafa’s things, but I have my routine. Rather than superstition, it’s to have a way to focus on the right thing. It sort of gets in your mind and you focus on your routine so you don’t always get caught up in the moment.
At the end of the day, you know how to play tennis. You have to free your mind sometimes from getting too busy and letting the situation take over your tennis.
Q. Why an even number of times?
MILOS RAONIC: Is that’s just a routine/superstition that I have.
Q. Any danger of not getting through today? I don’t know if everybody is going to finish tonight.
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it’s a relief knowing that you won’t have to play possibly Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday if you’re able to play good tennis.
So it’s a relief in that sense, that you go on on a general schedule, which in some terms is not, let’s say, fair or equal for everybody since there is a roof and top guys sort of get guaranteed more comfortable schedules in that sense.
But it is how it is, and you just got to deal with it.