Monfils mounts comeback to defeat Raonic in Stockholm semi-finals

Milos Raonic (Thornhill, ON) found himself two games away from advancing to a second ATP World Tour final in 2011 on Saturday in the semifinals of the If Stockholm Open in Sweden, an ATP 250 event. That’s when his opponent, World No. 10 Gaël Monfils showcased all of his talent and skill to post a 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-3 comeback win.

 

Both players held six times in the opening set to force a tiebreak. Monfils jumped out to a 5-2 lead only to see Raonic erase the deficit and convert his second set point, after the Frenchman hit an impressive lob winner on his first chance, at 7-6 to take a one set lead. Raonic held a break lead at 4-3 in the second set when Monfils took his play to another level to reel off three straight games and send the match into a decisive third frame. Monfils broke for the third time in the match at 3-2 in the third and managed to hold his lead to advance to his second final of the season.

 

Raonic was playing his fourth ATP semifinal of the year and third on indoor hard courts. His eleven wins on the surface in 2011 is tops among all players on Tour. He also notched his 30th win of the season in Stockholm. The 20-year-old Canadian will play his next tournament in two weeks at the Valencia Open in Spain, an ATP 500 event.