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A spasming back is an ongoing issue, but Milos Raonic still moves into the US Open third round
NEW YORK – When this happened Wednesday afternoon, you wouldn't have given too much for Milos Raonic's chances in the second round of the US Open against Fernando Verdasco.
But the 24-year-old Canadian managed. He took a medical timeout to have it worked on before the back spasmed out, and had a couple of other rubdowns later on. The tournament physician came out with a painkiller. He barely sat down on changeovers, preferring to stretch out the back as much as he could.
Somehow, Raonic did more than enough to get past Fernando Verdasco 6-2, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 7-6(1) and move into the third round of the US Open, where he will face another veteran Spanish lefty in Feliciano Lopez.
"When I saw that I was able to hold serve, I guess I was always going to give myself some kind of a chance. There were sometimes doubts, should I keep going or not. The worst part was it was sort of getting worse and worse," Raonic said. "It is what it is. Deal with it and move on."
Raonic seemed well on his way to a straight-sets win when things began to get complicated. He had his shot in the eventual third-set tiebreaker, but couldn't get it done. When it got to the fourth-set tiebreaker, he made no mistake.
Verdasco, a former top-10 player, somehow seems over it these days. It's not as though he's hitting the ball that much differently than when he was No. 7 in the world. It just seems as though that little extra spark, that little extra ferociousness, is muted. He spent more time worrying about the tournament support staff and his own team finding his misplaced "special" racquets and having them restrung than anything else.
By the time they were located and the strings freshened, it was almost over. By then, Raonic's back had loosened up some, he regained velocity on his serve, and Verdasco was reduced to gesturing to his camp, feigning a bad back as if to say, "His back hurts, and he's serving like THAT? Riiiiiiiight."
Regardless, the 31-year-old remains a dangerous opponent who has beaten Raonic three times in the six previous meetings between the two. On the plus side, the Canadian was ripping his groundstrokes with merciless authority – not just the big forehand, but also the more fragile backhand. And that's a very good sign.
"Yeah, I was going for it. I knew what I was playing with. I just tried to make the most of what I could do during the match. It allowed me to play a little bit more freely, but at the same time it's sort of the way I want to play. It's not always possible. I haven't played many matches," he said. "But things are coming together."
Raonic looked fairly mobile during his first-round match Monday against American Tim Smyczek, stretching with relative comfort. But he didn't practice Tuesday, merely rested and iced, trying to manage the back issue as best he can for the final major of the season. When you have legs as long as Raonic's, with that high centre of gravity, bending is a constant, neverending process.
"Yeah, it's been something just since Montreal that I've been dealing with, before Montreal. It sort of flared up in matches. The weeks in between have been okay. Trying to get it under control as much as I can," Raonic said. "From what I've spoken with people about, from physios to doctors, it's something completely different. It has no connection to the foot. That's a positive sign."
After the victory, he did a quick on-court interview, begged off a television interview with TSN (he apologized profusely, shaking the hands of cameraman Peter Bradley, reporter Mark Masters and producer Michael Gallo), signed a few autographs, and left for more treatment.
He is scheduled to practice on Thursday. But with the back, it's a day-to-day thing.
"Mental fortitude today is what has gotten me through, and it's what's going to give me a chance in my next match as well. I just have to keep plugging away and trying to be better and better each match. Those are the goals. Hopefully I can give myself a lot of matches to play here," he said.
