Novak Djokovic has progressed to his fourth Madrid Open semi-final after defeating Milos Raonic 6-3, 6-4.
The world No.1 has boasted a dominant record against Raonic ever since their first meeting, winning all six of their previous encounters. Their latest meeting in Madrid was no exception to this trend as Djokovic displayed a variety of outstanding winners to seal the victory.
The conditions in Madrid favour the big serves in the men’s game, increasing Raonic’s chances. Despite this, Djokovic was still able to tame the Canadian’s serve and dictate the match on his own terms. After an even start to the match, Djokovic’s first offensive consisted of an outstanding down the line winner that granted the top seed a break for 4-2. That break was fatal to Raonic’s first set hopes as Djokovic closed it out with ease.
Unlike the straightforward opening set, Djokovic was slightly threatened at the start of the second set. After breaking at the start, the world No.1 saved two break points before extending his lead to 2-0. The lead could have been increased to 3-0 but Djokovic failed to convert a duo of break points, followed by a backhand shot in the tramlines that allowed Raonic to hold his game. Raonic’s resistance proved problematic for Djokovic throughout the second set. Numerous times he came close to breaking, but he was still unable to get that extra point to secure the double break.
Nevertheless, the failure did little to stop the inevitability of the outcome of the match. A serve down the line followed by a forehand into the corner of the court awarded the top seed with his first match point, however, a nervous Serbian wasted it with a double fault. It wasn’t until his fourth match point that Djokovic sealed the win after a return from Raonic sailed out of the court.
“I returned exceptionally well. I thought I didn’t do too many things wrong. I’m very pleased with the performance” Djokovic said about his quarterfinal win.
“When I was in trouble I came up with some good serving, good forehands. I maybe could have capitalized on the opportunities early in the second set to go double break, but credit to him for fighting and being aggressive.”
The #Djokovic v #Raonic stats from Madrid. https://t.co/kRsZ9udpkC #MMOPEN pic.twitter.com/A7zERVfW0A
— TennisTV (@TennisTV) 6 May 2016
The victory is Djokovic’s 13th consecutive win over a top-10 player. He will be bidding to extend his record on Saturday when he plays world No.6 Kei Nishikori in what he expects to be a very different match.
“Well, he doesn’t serve as big as Milos, that’s for sure,” the world No.1 said about Nishikori.
“He’s much quicker around the court and he’s got a very aggressive, very good game for these kind of conditions. He is also a former finalist in the tournament.”
Following his 31st win on the ATP Tour this season, Djokovic is just two matches away from winning the Madrid Open for the first time since 2011.
