National Bank Open 2023: Milos Raonic incensed after questionable call costs him set vs. Tiafoe

One of the marquee matchups of Monday’s slate in the men's draw at the National Bank Open was overshadowed by controversy during the first set tiebreaker between Canadian Milos Raonic and world No. 10 Frances Tiafoe.

In the longest tiebreaker of the day, Raonic and Tiafoe were exchanging furious blows on serve, fighting through a brutal, one-hour set. Tiafoe hit one of the shots of the day to win the set, reaching just in time to retrieve the ball before it bounced twice and sent a winner into the ad court, causing an instant furor throughout Toronto’s Sobey’s Stadium.

Tiafoe crashed into the net upon winning the point, sending Raonic into an enraged frenzy. Chair umpire Fergus Murphy initially called it a foul point, before overturning his initial judgment in a split second and awarded the point — and thereby, the set — to Tiafoe.

Here’s the point in question:

And here’s a longer video of the point and the subsequent chaos that ensued:

Both men argued their point to a clearly overwhelmed Murphy and called upon the tournament supervisor to adjudge the point. The supervisor upheld the ruling upon a few minutes of deliberation while the ball kids were called to the net and Raonic was apoplectic, smashing a racket during the television break.

National Bank Open tournament referee Tony Cho provided the following statement:

“Tiafoe touched the area between the singles stick and net post. This area is considered a permanent fixture so not part of the net.”

The ATP made the correct call but during a matchday that was clearly centered around hometown favourite Raonic, with fellow Canadian veteran Vasek Pospisil slated to play the final match of the evening, but it was poorly received by the crowd. It’s eminently possible that this could be Raonic’s final match on home soil, during an evening that was preceded by a celebration of Canada’s 2022 Davis Cup-winning team, so it could be argued that the controversial point added insult to injury.

Despite the frustrating break, Raonic bounced back to win the second set on another tiebreak, then cruised through the final set to win the match, recording 36 aces along the way.

Raonic will await the winner between Adrian Mannarino and Taro Daniel in the Round of 32.