Canada beat Mexico in first round of Davis Cup 2011 Group one tie
Milos Raonic defeated Daniel Garza in straight sets 7-5, 6-3, 6-2 in the first reverse singles to give Canada an unassailable 3-1 lead on Sunday.
The Canadian, ranked 37th in the world, faced tough competition in the opening set. However, he was able to break Garza’s serve once in the set and consolidated on it to clinch the first set 7-5.
Raonic played an aggressive game in the second set. The 20-year-old broke his opponent in the eighth game to take a 5-3 lead. The Canadian then held his serve to win the set 6-3.
After taking a two-set lead, Raonic never looked back and broke his opponent twice in the third set, winning it 6-2.
Talking to the reporters after the match, Raonic said, “This was a great opportunity for me and I'm proud that I got the chance to play and proud that I came through for the team. I've been doing a lot of my individual stuff, but it's very important for
me to win for Canada, too.”
The Canadian added, “It's a different level of pride playing Davis Cup. It's not my name on the draw, it's Canada. It means a lot to the country and to the sport, as far as growth is concerned, for us to keep pushing for the World Group.”
Raonic came to the limelight after performing remarkably well in the 2011 season. The right-handed started the year ranked 153rd in the South African Airways ATP Rankings. He has jumped 116 places in the rankings in 6 weeks to reach the 37th
spot.
The Canadian won the first title of his career at the SAP Open in February, defeating Fernando Verdasco in straight sets in the final.
After his success at the SA Open, Raonic reached the final of the Regions Morgan Keegan Championship. However, he lost to Roddick in a thrilling three setter 6-7, 7-6, 5-7.
Later in the day, Peter Polansky defeated Manuel Sanchez in straight sets 6-4, 6-1 in a dead rubber to make the score 4-1 in favour of Canada.
Canada’s doubles specialist Daniel Nestor, ranked 3rd in the doubles rankings, missed the tie due to an Achilles injury.
Earlier, Raonic and Vasek Pospisil prevailed over Luis Diaz-Barriga and Miguel-Angel Reyes-Varela in four sets 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in the doubles match to give Canada a 2-1 lead on Saturday.
Canada will face Ecuador in their own backyard in the next round of Davis Cup from 8 – 10 July, 2011. Ecuador lead Canada 5-1 in the head-to-head record between the two countries.
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