Raonic takes down Nadal to advance to Indian Wells semifinals
The sixth time was the charm.
Milos Raonic defeated Rafael Nadal 4-6, 7-6, 7-5 to advance to the semifinals of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., on Friday. It was the Canadian's first win against Nadal in six career matches, and arguably the biggest in the 24-year-old's career.
Raonic, seeded sixth at the tournament saved three match points in the second set, earning the hard-fought win. He kept Nadal, the third seed, out of the semifinals with the rest of the Big Four: Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Andy Murray.
Raonic said he was ready to step up. He said it was exciting to play Rafa. He wanted this, he got it. Amazing.
— Lyra Pappin (@lyrapappin) March 21, 2015
Nadal had lost only one set to Raonic coming into Friday's match. The loss is only the second of the Spaniard's career in which he won 52 or more percent of the match's total points.
Rafa said he was happy with the way he played and competed Friday, that the match came down to a few points, which bounced Raonic's way.
Milos Raonic has now beaten Federer (Paris-Bercy) and Nadal (Indian Wells) to make semis of back-to-back Masters 1000s. Not bad / pas mal.
— Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) March 21, 2015
Up next for Raonic is the Swiss maestro Federer, so the road to the final remains extremely challenging. But anything is possible when you "believe in the sleeve."
Milos Raonic reflects on a milestone coming up with the one-armed bandit who stole his heart. pic.twitter.com/XpKAmTnZS2
— Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) March 21, 2015