Milos Raonic of Canada plays a return to Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain during their men's singles match on day one of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Monday, June 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Tim Ireland)
Republished June 27, 2016 - 1:39 PM
Original Publication Date June 27, 2016 - 9:55 AM
LONDON - Milos Raonic advanced to the second round of Wimbledon on Monday with a 7-6 (4), 6-2, 6-4 win over Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta.
The sixth-seeded Canadian used his big serve to his advantage, firing 27 aces past Carreno Busta in a match that took one hour 53 minutes to complete.
The Spaniard, however, did not surrender the match without a fight. Carreno Busta saved six match points before Raonic was finally able to put him away.
Raonic had a chance to break Carreno Busta for victory in the ninth game of the third set, but Carreno Busta rallied to save two break points and force another game.
"I didn't expect to pick up where I left off in Queen's by any means," said Raonic, who advanced to the final of a grass-court tournament at London's Queen's Club two weeks ago in preparation for Wimbledon. "But I though I created opportunities. Even in that first set I had a few looks on his serve or I was in most of his service games.
"Maybe I lost my concentration a few times on my service games but I was always able to bring myself back."
Raonic will face Andreas Seppi in the second round. The Italian advanced with a 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 win over Spain's Guillermo Garcia-Lopez. Raonic and Seppi have only met once before, with the Canadian emerging victorious in the quarter-finals of the 2013 Davis Cup.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2016