Milos Raonic beaten by Florian Mayer in the opener – Internazionali BNL d’Italia 2012
Canada’s rising star, Milos Raonic, bowed out from the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, as he was upset by Florian Mayer of Germany in straight sets 6-7(5), 4-6 in the first round at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome on
Sunday.
Raonic and Mayer put on a serving display in the first set, as they did not allow each other to break even once until the end and squared off the score at 6-6. The German struck twice in the tie-breaker to close it 7-6(5).
Mayer fired a couple of aces and 64 percent of the first deliveries, converting 22 of the 25 of them into points. In comparison, Raonic did not lag behind, as he pounded five aces and 63 percent of the first serves in the opening
set, claiming 23 of the 27 points on them. The German, however, did better on the second returns, grabbing eight of the 16 points compared to four of the 14 by Raonic.
In the second set, both players started steadily in a similar fashion to the opener, as they held their serve in the first eight games to take the score to 4-4. Mayer struck in the ninth and consolidated on it to triumph 6-4.
The German contender matched his first set’s performance of two aces in the second and did not commit any double fault. He lost only one point on the first serves, winning 13 of the 14 of them. The 28-year-old saved both break
points he faced and converted the only one he received in the second set.
Mayer took an hour and 31 minutes to come out victorious from the match.
In an interview after the match, Raonic accepted, “I was playing quite well. He just played better. He jumped on everything I hit, I couldn’t rise to his level today.”
He added, “He played well to neutralize my game. He made me feel uncomfortable all the time on court. I began well but his game frustrated me, he was always saving himself and it was heavy going.”
The weather was hot and humid in Rome. Raonic said, “Today was tough conditions. I could have done a few things better. But I’m gaining experience in these situations. I didn’t play my best tennis but I played OK. My goal is to
compete with the guys on a regular basis.”
Mayer will now take on King of Clay, Rafael Nadal of Spain, in the second round.
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