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Raonic: I only practiced on the central court once

The Swiss sailed through the last round match with the French qualifier, with just the necessary amount of effort. Raonic struggled again, avoiding the third set only thanks to Bautista's errors. He needs a title here to get to the Masters, but first he needs to beat a player he is on a 0-6 record against

The race to get the Number One position at the end of the season continues. Đoković and Federer continue on their private quest, while a few players are still fighting to get to London. The Swiss once again faced a Frenchman, but had a much easier task this time. Chardy was dangerous, and they both new it. He entered the match against Pouille with a relaxed attitude, the one he used to have while he was way above everyone else, we could even say casually. The young Frenchman entered through the qualifiers and got to the third round without losing a set, with no gifts along the way, but it was clear he cannot threaten his idol's serve, just as he feared prior to the match.

As Federer entered the match casually, the Frenchman won his first 10 serve points in a row. After 10 minutes the score was 3-3, and the series would have probably continued had Pouille not made two double faults while leading 40-15 in the seventh set. This brought Federer out of his lethargic state for long enough to score a break, and then he calmly held on to his serve till the end of the set.


The second set displayed the characteristic weak side of the Swiss. Numerous break points and terrible realization, with as many as nine in three different games and only the last one converted into a break. It's true he could stay relaxed as he was untouchable on the serve, but that's no excuse. Regardless of it all, he was on court for less than 80 minutes, which tends to happen when you spend 13 seconds between serves. Everything went smoothly, which was to his liking as well:


- It's good that I did not spend a lot of time or energy on court today. I think I got into my rhythm, since you know where you stand after five sets. The next match will be against a dangerous opponent, as Raonic is an aggressive player with an improving game after the serve, which was always a threat. The stakes are high, as we're both fighting for the final, London for him and the top spot for me, which will make things even more interesting.


Raonic continues to scrape through, and despite being out of rhythm and not pleased with his game at all, he is showing mental strength in each match. He needs to win the title to secure London, that's practically a given now. He got things done in the third set tie-break against Sock, and almost had the same scenario against Bautista as well but managed to get through in two sets in the end. He played in the small arena, where it's somewhat easier to dominate on the serve, although the surface is less important in his case. The key is confidence, and it show's when it's most important, which is the only thing he can he happy about.


The match against Bautista went along expected lines. Both easily held their serves up to the very finish of the set, where the Spaniard allowed two tied break points. The Canadian converted the second one. The second set saw more of a game on returns, with Bautista getting a break twice, including serving for the set. The Canadian managed to come back every time, including the tie-break, where he was behind 5-2 and saved a set point.


- I served and played well when it mattered most. I think my overall performance was better than the one against Sock, It's true that I got a bit luck in the second set, but I did play the right moves when it was close, which is what I have to keep doing- commented Raonic on his performance, who is now facing the toughest task:


- I have to play better against Roger. I also only practiced once on the central court, so I'll need time to adjust. The most important thing is that I keep improving with each new match, that's all I'm looking for. I'm not thinking about London, just about the coming match.


The Swiss has a 6-0 lead in previous matches, and Ranoic never managed to get to the extra period in the two matches they played this year, which is the most troubling part. His serve did not help either, although he might have an easier time in this match as Federer is not doing as well as he did in his previous tournaments.