Benjamin Becker stuns Milos Raonic in the second round – Hall of Fame Tennis Championships 2012
German qualifier, Benjamin Becker, continued to make upsets, as he surprised the third seed, Milos Raonic of Canada, in twin sets 6-3, 6-3 in the round of 16 of the Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport, USA on
Thursday. The German contestant dominated throughout the contest and took only an hour and three minutes to win it.
Becker came through the qualifying draw and toppled his higher-ranked opponent, David Goffin of Belgium, in straight sets 6-4, 6-3 in the opening round.
There was no early drama in his latest encounter, as Becker and Raonic held their serves quite convincingly in the first seven games to take the score to 4-3 in favour of the former. Raonic had three game points in the eighth,
as he had gone up 40-0 but the Canadian star failed to utilise any of them and then lost two more points to go down 3-5. Becker did not make the same mistake, making the most of this golden opportunity to grab it 6-3.
The German had mixed statistics on serve, as he pounded three aces but also committed a couple of double faults. The 31-year-old maintained a low first delivery percentage of 65, clinching 17 of the 20 points on them. The Orscholz,
Germany resident gave his worst performance on the second serves and first returns, losing seven of the 11 and 10 of the 12 points on them respectively. However, the right-hander was the better player when it mattered most, converting one of the two break
points he received in the opener.
In the second set, Becker hit a blow to the Canadian in the third and won his subsequent serve to take a 3-1 lead. Raonic’s disappointing serve performance continued, as he failed to hold in the ninth and lost 3-6.
Talking to reporters during the post match press conference, Becker shared the reason behind his success. He said, "If you qualify you have three good matches under your belt. You know the courts, which is a little bit of an advantage
over the guys who have only played one match. He didn’t serve many aces, whereas last time I played him he served nearly 30 aces. His serve wasn’t as effective today; I made him play a lot on his second serve and used my chances."
The German is slated to meet the sixth seeded American player, Ryan Harrison, in the quarter-finals.
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