TENNIS ATP TORONTO – 8th of August 2014. F. Lopez d. M. Raonic 6-4, 6-7, 6-3. An interview with Milos Raonic
Q. Describe what happened in the third set, why you weren’t able to wrestle away the momentum and keep it in your way.
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, he did a good job. He stepped up and played well on the important moments, especially on his service game.
I just need to show in a few situations more courage and go for a little bit more. Not just that third set but all throughout the match. I just felt like I never let it go through or impose myself, and I think that’s what cost me over time.
Q. Did you find that with having the home crowd behind you, did you find that to be uplifting? Did you find it as a hindrance with added pressure? Was it somewhere in the middle?
MILOS RAONIC: No, it was great. The crowd was great. They helped me out with a lot of difficult situations this week where I wasn’t able to play necessarily my best tennis, but they helped me be able to gut through a lot of important moments like that second set tiebreak today and the previous two matches. I’m grateful to have that kind of support when I’m playing at home.
Q. Did it take some time to adjust to his style of cuts and his slices and change of pace on the court?
MILOS RAONIC: No. I think it was only about adjusting really to the serve. But the thing I would say that I can take away most from this match is making sure I step up in certain moments and really go for it and try to make a difference rather than sort of just staying a little bit too much and too passive and letting things happen to me.
Q. Have you ever had nine break points in your career before?
MILOS RAONIC: I have had nine break points. Not nine in the same game.
Q. Anything similar in your career to that?
MILOS RAONIC: There’s been, I would say, five, six maybe. But he came up with some good serves. I came up with one great return on a second serve. He played that point well. Not much I could do. He just played good courage and he went for it and it paid off for him.
Q. You have had a pretty good start to the hard court season with the win in Washington and now getting to the quarters here. How are you feeling going to Cincinnati and your expectations for the US Open?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I feel good. I may not show it right now, but in general when I sort of step away from this after a little bit of time, everything is going the right way.
I’m competing well and fighting well, and I know I can play much better tennis. The goal has always been get better each week to be playing my best tennis in New York, and that’s what I’m most looking forward to. Cincinnati is the next step to getting better.
Q. How are you feeling physically? Do you feel any fatigue from a busy past couple of weeks?
MILOS RAONIC: No. I feel good. I have been fortunate that I haven’t had any aches or pains, and I feel like energy wise I’m good. Just probably need a day to just sort of clear my mind and refresh a little bit mentally.
It’s a pretty busy week. It’s a little bit different from any other week.