TENNIS ATP CINCINNATI – 15th of August 2014. M. Raonic d. F. Fognini 6-1, 6-0. An interview with Milos Raonic
Q. Everybody talks about your serve, but the return in today’s match seemed to be the key.
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, for once I actually struggled with my serve and not my return.
Yeah, a lot of things I did well today knowing and just understanding. Playing him on its on is difficult just because of the unpredictability.
I was able to break pretty handily most of the time, and then I was scrapping out quite a few service games, especially in the second set.
Q. I read first it’s time you ever won more than 50% return points in an ATP match. Did it feel that way to you out there?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I felt good, especially after yesterday. I struggled for two and a half sets with my return. We spent time speaking about things to do differently today to find my groove, and I was able to find it right from the start.
Definitely felt good, and I needed that after yesterday. Even just last week I felt I returned very poorly. I returned pretty well by the end of Washington, so it’s good to get this as the tournament goes along.
Q. Playing Fognini he has an a lot of ups and downs and his attention span can drift in and out. Do you prepare for that when you’re playing him, that you know there will be peaks and valleys?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, you know that. You try to sort of take advantage of those, let’s say, little slumps he might have throughout a match.
At the same time, it’s difficult. You can’t really control him. It can be very sporadic at times. You just focus on yourself and make sure you do yourself and see and adjust to how things are coming from him as you go.
You can’t really predict too much in advance.
Q. This is going to sound really silly, and it is, but the hair really stays in place the entire time. What kind of product do you use? Is it like a whole ordeal that you have?
MILOS RAONIC: No, it takes me quicker to do my hair than it does to shave. Trust me, I have very little to shave.
Q. It takes me longer to do my hair than shave.
MILOS RAONIC: No, but just probably a lot of product. A lot of product. (Smiling.)
Q. I heard there is like a strategy behind it. It keeps the sweat out of your face or something.
MILOS RAONIC: No, I actually found one brand that before the issue would be if you put a lot of product the hair doesn’t absorb it at all and it just keeps going down your face.
This one allows the hair to absorb it as well. I still sweat across my eyes, just not as much as if I used another product.
Q. Do you have sort of like a…
MILOS RAONIC: Oh, just because of the angle it goes at? No, my sweat doesn’t go down the back. It still comes down the front of my face. I can’t redirect that.
Nowadays you can make dams, you can make lakes, you can make everything artificial. I cannot article artificially direct my hair and my sweat.