Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic has recruited Mark Knowles as his coach during the upcoming grass court season.
The appointment comes shortly after the Canadian parted ways with Richard Krajicek after six months together. Raonic’s decision was announced following his fourth round loss to Pablo Carreno Busta at the French Open. During his time with Krajicek, he reached two ATP finals in Delray Beach and Istanbul.
Looking ahead to the grass season, the 26-year-old has opted to seek guidance from three-time grand slam doubles champion Knowles. According to tennis.life, Raonic also had discussions about a potential collaboration with Pat Cash. Cash announced on Tuesday that he will be working with Coco Vandeweghe. Both Raonic and Knowles are represented by sports agency CAA Sports.
I am happy to inform that Mark Knowles is joining my team and will join us this week as I get ready for the grass season.
— Milos Raonic (@milosraonic) 13 June 2017
I look forward to a great cooperation and hope to enjoy Mark’s experience and knowledge.
— Milos Raonic (@milosraonic) 13 June 2017
Knowles is the fifth different coach to work with Raonic since 2014. Between 2013-2015 he worked with Ivan Ljubicic followed by former world No.1 Carlos Moya in 2016. He was also mentored by John McEnroe throughout last year’s grass season, when he reached his first grand slam final.
During his career, 45-year-old Knowles won 55 ATP doubles titles over a 19-year period. The five-time Olympian is known best for his lengthy doubles partnership with Canadian player Daniel Nestor. In the singles, Knowles achieved as ranking best of 96th in the world.
Knowles’ appointment comes as Raonic prepares for a crucial period of the year. A runner-up at both Queen’s and Wimbledon in 2016, he will have a considerable amount of points to defend. He will be seeded third at next week’s Aegon Championships behind Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka.
Despite a series of injury setbacks hampering him this season, Raonic has achieved a win-loss record of 22-7 so far.
