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Raonic fights through back issues, outlasts Verdasco in Round 2 win

REUTERS/Mike Segar

It wasn't easy, but Milos Raonic fought off Fernando Verdasco in their seventh career head-to-head match with the No. 10 seed winning in four sets 6-2, 6-4, 6-7, 7-6 while battling back discomfort throughout the match.

Raonic cancelled his practice Tuesday due to back spasms, and after breezing through the first set in 27 minutes, the pain resurfaced.

Raonic took a medical timeout in the second set, telling his trainer his back was hurting when he bent over to serve. The Canadian cancelled his practice a day earlier due to back spams, but the timeout seemed effective as he fought on to take the set 6-4.

But Raonic's lower back pain persisted and he received more treatment in the third set, which he went on to lose in a tiebreak. He held serve through the fourth set despite limited mobility and routed Verdasco 7-1 in the match-ending tiebreak.

The big server finished the match with 18 aces to advance to his eighth consecutive Grand Slam third round (he missed the 2015 French Open after undergoing foot surgery).

He looks to break another head-to-head tie with a Spaniard as he faces No. 18 Feliciano Lopez, who like Verdasco held a 3-3 record against Raonic entering this year's Open.

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