Raonic defeats Andreev to advance at Estoril Open

Milos Raonic beat Igor Andreev 6-4, 6-4 in the opening round at the 2011 Estoril Open.

Raonic put pressure on his opponent broke for 3-2 in the opening set. He kept the lead to win the set and continued with his good play in the second set where he broke in the fifth game.

Andreev saved a pair of match points in the final game and forced Raonic to save two break points but the Canadian hit service winner to seal the win.

“I feel good, I’m happy I could play this well so early in the event,” said Raonic. “Igor is a tremendous player on clay. I squeezed through the tough situations and handled them well. This is a start and something to build upon for rest of week.”

In the second round he will play against Joao Sousa.

“That will be tough for many reasons: the player, the atmosphere, the home crowd, which can all only help (Sousa) ...,” said Raonic. “I need to find a way to win and stay mature about it all. Hopefully I can come with as good a result as I had today. I’m feeling better and better on clay, playing better with each match.

“I want to keep improving without putting too many expectations on myself.”



Source The Canadian Press