Australian Open winner Stanislas Wawrinka reached the semi-finals of the Monte Carlo Masters on Friday with a 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 victory over Canadian Milos Raonic.
Monte Carlo: Australian Open winner Stanislas Wawrinka reached the semi-finals of the Monte Carlo Masters on Friday with a 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 victory over Canadian Milos Raonic.
Wawrinka, who had a walkover in the previous round when Spain`s Nicolas Almagro pulled out with a foot injury, will wait for a weekend opponent as eight-time champion Rafael Nadal faces compatriot and good friend David Ferrer, seeded sixth.
Wawrinka, who has dragged himself out of a short slump he suffered after beating Nadal for the grand slam title in Melbourne three months ago, took control as eighth seed Raonic twice lost leads in the opening set tie-breaker.
The mistakes gave an opening to Wawrinka, who took the first set on his initial opportunity and then broke to start the second as the frustrated Raonic let go of a 40-15 lead in the first game.
From that point on, momentum totally shifted to the Swiss world number three, who broke the Canadian again for 5-2 before serving out for the match in 90 minutes.
Wawrinka finished with 30 winners and 28 unforced errors and never faced a break point. The Swiss was playing his third consecutive quarter-final at the event which marks the start of the European clay season and the run-up to Roland Garros which begins on May 25.
He now stands 3-0 over Raonic, who was playing his first clay court quarter-final at the Masters 1000 level.
Wawrinak duplicated his 2009 result by reaching the semi-finals and improving his season record to 18-3.
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.