Viktor Troicki defeated fifth seed Milos Raonic 6-4, 6-4 in the first round of the China Open on Monday. Raonic came into the match holding a 2-0 advantage in the pair’s FedEx ATP Head2Head series, with both victories coming in 2012, but was swept aside by an in-form Troicki after 76 minutes.
Troicki did well to neutralise the power of the big-serving Canadian, holding Raonic to four aces and breaking the 6’5” right-hander twice (2-for-3 on break chances) during the match. The World No. 24 also took care of his own service games, landing 70 per cent of first serves and saving both break points faced against Raonic, who was making his Beijing debut after reaching the final of Tokyo 12 months ago (l. to Nishikori).
The first-round setback was a tough blow for Raonic’s Barclays ATP World Tour Finals hopes, as he trails David Ferrer by 1175 Emirates ATP Race To London points (3,255 to 2,080). The Spaniard currently occupies the eighth and final available spot for the year-end championships.
Jack Sock moved into the second round in Beijing after a 6-4, 6-3 win over Teimuraz Gabashvili. The American sealed the win in 71 minutes, going 4-of-6 on break points and winning 88 per cent of first serve points (21/24).
After going down a break at 1-3 in the second set, Sock swept the five subsequent games to earn his 26th tour-level win of the year (26-13). In the second round, he will take on Andreas Haider-Maurer, who upset eighth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. The pair has never met in an ATP World Tour event.
Top Seed Through In Doubles
No. 1 seeds Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau rallied to defeat Eric Butorac and Scott Lipsky 3-6, 6-3, 10-4 on Monday. Rojer/Tecau saved three break points in the final game of the second set to force a Match Tie-break, then secured the win in 66 minutes.
Second seeds Marcin Matkowski and Nenad Zimonjic joined the top seeds in the quarter-finals after beating qualifiers Julian Knowle and Oliver Marach 6-3, 6-4.
( Courtesy of the ATP and Original Link – http://www.atpworldtour.com/en/news/troicki-upsets-raonic-china-open-2015-beijing )
Topics: Andreas Haider-Maurer, Atp World Tour, Beijing, China Open, David Ferrer, Eric Butorac, Horia Tecau, jack sock, Jean-Julien Rojer, Jo Wilfried Tsonga, Men's tennis, milos raonic, Scott Lipsky, Sports, Teimuraz Gabashvili, Tennis, Viktor Troicki
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