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Milos Raonic saved three match points to claim his first win over Rafael Nadal Friday at the BNP Paribas Open. The Canadian beat the third seed 4-6, 7-6(10), 7-5 to advance to a semi-final meeting with Roger Federer as he looks to reach his second consecutive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final.

“At the moments when I was playing those match points, it didn't really feel like match points,” said Raonic. “It was just like another point that I was trying to get through… just sort of going through the paces at that moment of what do I need to do now, not really signifying it as a match point.”

Raonic ended Nadal's perfect record against Canadians, notching his first win against the Spaniard to reach his fifth ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final.

World No. 6 Raonic was broken for the first time this tournament as the three-time champion took a 2-1 lead in the first set. Nadal went on to win the first set in 36 minutes. The Canadian saved three match points in the second-set tie-break to force a third set.

Raonic finally earned a crucial break in the third set to go up 6-5 and a chance to serve out the match.

The Canadian fired 19 aces and saved six of his seven break points faced in the two hour, 58-minute victory.

“I feel obviously all sorts of good,” said Raonic. “Obviously there was a lot of up and down through that match, and all I could ask of myself was just keep competing and hope to find a way. I got fortunate a few times and it worked out.”

“I think I did well," said Nadal. "I enjoyed the fact that I felt well with myself on court again. I felt competitive. I felt strong, with the right energy. I lost that match thinking much more positive things than negative ones."

Federer leads the FedEx ATP Head2Head series against Raonic 8-1.

Did You Know?

Raonic has advanced to the quarter-final or better at eight of his last 10 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 events. Only Federer can match the Canadian’s quarter-final record in that period.

Milos Raonic is making his return to Miami hot on the heels of a strong showing in Indian Wells that included his first win over World No. 3 Rafael Nadal.

The Canadian has been steadily making up ground against the Spaniard after winning just four games against him when they faced each other at the 2013 Montreal Masters. Nadal needed three sets to stop Raonic in last year’s Miami quarter-finals before the 24 year old finally claimed a win last week in the desert.

“It was a very inexperienced situation for me,” Raonic said of their meeting in Montreal. “It was tough to play that match, but I tried to make the most of it. Last year I think I improved tremendously. I think I gave myself a much better chance, and I think it sort of continued in that trend where I'm improving and giving myself better opportunities, and that was the difference in Indian Wells.”

Raonic, who is making his fifth appearance at the Miami Open, is hoping to preserve his focus from one ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event to another.

“I think the hardest thing between these two weeks is maintaining a certain level,” said the World No. 6. “You’ve got to do it across four weeks, maybe three‑and‑a‑half weeks if you start in Indian Wells and want to finish on the last day in Miami. I think that's the most difficult part.”

While the hot, humid conditions in South Florida may take some adjustment, there is one thing the 6’5” Raonic can count on when he heads out to the court: his serve.

“Even from a young age, my serve was always my biggest weapon,” he said. “I used to spend a lot of time on it. There wasn't always somebody to practise with in Canada, so you take a basket of balls and you go out and you serve. I didn't know that was going to be what would carry me through. I have always seen it as the most important shot in tennis as a way to start the point ahead.”

Just as he has climbed to a career-high Emirates ATP Ranking of No. 4, Milos Raonic has announced that he will undergo minor surgery to correct a pinched nerve in his right foot.

The injury forced Raonic to withdraw from his quarter-final match against Tomas Berdych in Monte-Carlo. Despite a week of rest during the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, he continued to feel pain during his quarter-final run in Madrid, prompting the decision to have surgery.

Raonic confirmed the move on Twitter, explaining his decision to withdraw from Rome in hopes of being “ready to compete as soon as possible”.

Austin Nunn, a spokesman for Raonic, explained that the recovery time for the procedure is approximately a week-and-a-half to two weeks. “He is trying to get ready to play the French Open,” Nunn said. “Rome is unfortunately just when the surgery can be done.”

Raonic’s team will provide updates following the surgery.

World No. 6 Milos Raonic announced Thursday his withdrawal from the upcoming Roland Garros tournament, which begins 24 May.

"I am sad to have to unfortunately announce my withdrawal from 2015’s Roland Garros," said Raonic. "I tried my best to be back on court and healthy in time after surgery but after consulting with my team and doctors, I made a decision to withdraw from this year’s tournament and make sure I am able to return return to the court at one hundred per cent. My rehab will continue this week and I will shortly begin preparations for a strong Queens Club and Wimbledon."

The Canadian underwent a successful surgery last week in France to fix Morton’s Neuroma in his right foot. The painful condition involves the thickening of the tissue around one of the nerves leading to the toe and is the same injury that forced him to retire from the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters and withdraw from the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome.

Raonic reached the quarter-finals of Roland Garros last year, his best showing in Paris, before losing to Novak Djokovic.

Milos Raonic beats Tommy Haas to reach the third round, where he will face Nick Kyrgios
Seventh seed Milos Raonic overcame a strong fight back from veteran Tommy Haas to reach the Wimbledon third round.
The Canadian notched a 6-0, 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-6(4) win over the 2009 semi-finalist on Wednesday at the All England Club.
The 24-year-old Raonic got off to a roaring start, winning the first set in 18 minutes, losing just six points in the set. In the third set, Raonic fired a 145 mph serve, the third-fastest serve in Wimbledon history behind Taylor Dent (148 mph in 2010) and Andy Roddick (146 mph in 2004).
Raonic fired 29 aces and saved all three break points he faced in the two hour, 34-minute match.
“I'm still thankful for the opportunities I give myself and still enjoy being out there and try to train hard and give myself chances like I did today," said Haas. “Playing on Court 1 in Wimbledon at my age, my career, was very special. I'm not going to forget it, that's for sure.”
The World No. 8 will next face No. 26 seed Nick Kyrgios, a 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-4 winner over Juan Monaco. The Aussie hit 39 winners and faced no break points as he advanced comfortably to the third round in one hour and 40 minutes.
“I've just had a little bit of a sinus infection the last couple weeks,” said Kyrgios. “It's getting to the end stages of it, but it's still affecting me a little bit. It's going to go away eventually. It's pretty annoying at the start of matches. started getting blurry vision. I thought I dug out the first set well. Obviously lifted my energy towards the second and third.”
Kyrgios had his best showing at Wimbledon last year when he beat Rafael Nadal en route to the quarter-finals (l. to Raonic). He will again face the Canadian, who leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 2-0.
“It's going to be a good match,” said Raonic. “We haven't played for a year now. I think a lot has changed on both ends. It's something I look forward to.
“I feel like I do a lot of things better. I feel like I understand myself better. I feel like I know how to control situations better, whether that be physically or just from the mental side. So I have had a lot of experience since then. I'm just trying to make sort of the most of every opportunity.”
“I'm excited to play a guy like that, he's pretty much at the top of the game," Kyrgios said of his next opponent. "After last year's performance against him, I'm confident I can do well... I know what I have to do out there, but at the same time, there's not so much you can do on his serve.”
David Goffin, the No. 16 seed, advanced to the third round with a 7-6(3), 6-1, 6-1 victory over Liam Broady. Goffin hit 27 winners to dispatch the home favourite in one hour and 53 minutes.
The Belgian will next face Marcos Baghdatis after the Cypriot survived a 3 hour, 43-minute battle with John Millman. Baghdatis came from two sets down to beat the Aussie 6-7(5), 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4.

Q. You're a numbers guy.

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah.

Q. B‑, C+, or how would you grade it?

MILOS RAONIC: Those are the options? (Laughter.)

Umm. B. I'm happy to have gotten through, and that's the most important thing today.

Q. What about the little sort of hiccup in the third set?

MILOS RAONIC: It wasn't just the third set. There were just many throughout the match. I've just got to clean up that discipline part of it. That's just something that comes down to myself, and it's not really a very demanding thing.

Q. In a match like that, did you feel the serve was locked in from the beginning, or does it take some time...

MILOS RAONIC: No, I don't really think I actually served that well. I just lacked a little bit of intensity and discipline in the right parts of my game.

I think it sort of showed, because I would have to dig out of a few problems a few times Love‑30, a break points, maybe situations that I wouldn't normally let myself get into.

Q. Do you have to get into best‑of‑five‑set mode? Because you missed the French, so it's been like four months since you played well?

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it takes a little bit extra, and it's just something you ask of yourself, really. I don't think you need to sort of play matches to get in that mode, but you just have to be disciplined with yourself mentally about it. That's it.

Q. The court didn't seem that fast for some reason.

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, but so far all the courts I have practiced on, none have been too quick. Compared to even Aorangi, it's quite a bit slower. The ball sits up a little bit more.

Q. Is it juicy, or what do you think it is?

MILOS RAONIC: Even just the movement. He did slip a few times, but even just from the first day that I practiced on the court, probably because it hasn't been that wet here, even just ‑‑ the court feels pretty gritty. It doesn't feel like you're ever really slipping around other than from what you saw from him.

Compared to normally how I feel when I really get on the first days of the courts here inside the main match courts, it's definitely a bit more gritty than normal. There has never been a single issue with footing here.

Q. Do you like old guys? Do you like playing old guys?

MILOS RAONIC: I know what's ahead of me. I haven't played him for a while. He's been doing some great things really, so I think age is irrelevant. I've just got to face Tommy and try to play my best.

Q. A lot of people think he's a very nice player to watch. When you were coming up, did you ever watch him and enjoy watching the way he plays?

MILOS RAONIC: I did. I remember when Toronto was at the old site. I think he might have gone very far.

Q. Yeah, he did.

MILOS RAONIC: One year in Toronto when it was at the old, was it called ‑‑ I don't know what the name of that old stadium was.


Q. There is no name for it.

MILOS RAONIC: There was no name? Du Maurier Cup?

Q. The tournament was called that.

MILOS RAONIC: I remember watching him there. It was nice.

Q. You slammed the door pretty firmly after a shaky game there at the end. Sometimes it's good to have a big serve, eh?

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it does help. Makes my life a little bit easier.

Q. When you have a weapon like that serve, you're a young guy, does it take a couple of years to organize the rest of your game around it? Can you talk about that a little bit.

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it definitely takes, at least it took me some more time to sort of figure out the rest of my game and how to sort of find that tennis identity.

I wasn't the best junior, by any means, but after when I was able to clarify what my strengths are and how to use them, I think I made good progress forward.

Q. You feel it's complete now?

MILOS RAONIC: No. I think I'm improving every single day, but I know what I need to do, that's for sure. Now it's just about getting better at it.

Q. Tommy Haas at 37, what do you think about that?

MILOS RAONIC: I think it's incredible what he's doing. It's not just playing at 37 but playing at 37 and constantly coming back from many different things. It's a testament to the passion he has for the game and the kind of work ethic and resilience he has that makes big problems not seem too big.

Q. In the third set, did anything approaching anxiety, if not panic, start to settle in with you?

MILOS RAONIC: No. I was serving pretty well. That's always going to make my job a little bit easier.

Then I just had to sort of find a way a little bit better from the baseline and find a way to return a little bit better.

Q. Was there any sense of trying to finish in three, and the third set maybe you pressed a little bit to try to get it over in three?

MILOS RAONIC: No, I don't think so. I think he sort of settled down a little bit. I thought he was playing quite well. He was actually probably doing a better job than I was in that third set.

I only really started figuring things out a little bit midway through that fourth set, getting sort of back on top. I had that Love‑30 game where I had a forehand to make Love‑40, and then I had the Love‑40.

But all in all, it was like any three‑out‑of‑five‑set match is going to be. It's going to go back and forth a little bit. Especially good players is it ever one way.

Q. There is a lot of talk about what a big asset a big serve is on grass, but do you approach grass court tennis, especially here, differently in a way you're going to serve or how much emphasis you put on the serve? What is your philosophy that way?

MILOS RAONIC: No, it's pretty much the same way. My game, doesn't matter how well I'm playing, I still need my serve. Doesn't matter how bad I'm playing, my serve can keep me in a match. On any surface that's pretty much a factor.

So I always put a lot of emphasis and focus into it. Obviously the last two years here, last year and this year, I'm serving differently than I did before. I'm putting more emphasis on it.

Before I thought I could sort of get away with sort of just throwing it down just because it's grass and sort of slide away from the guy. Then I realized last year I learned quite a bit how important it is to keep going for it full out all the time.

Q. More flat?

MILOS RAONIC: Not flat but high paced. Not slowing it down to sort of try and be fancy and hit the spots a bit more. Keep the same efficiency I use on clay and hard courts, as well.

Q. What are your thoughts on facing Nick?

MILOS RAONIC: It's going to be a good match. We haven't played for a year now. I think a lot has changed on both ends. It's something I look forward to.

Q. What do you remember about that match most from last year?

MILOS RAONIC: I remember that there was many difficult moments, but I felt that the thing that helped me the most was my calm demeanor. In that sense I had quite a few opportunities a few different times. I wasn't making the most of them, but my attitude was what sort of helped me get over that hump and sort of clear my way through that match.

Q. What are the Aussie fans like when they come out for Nick or other Australian players in your experience?

MILOS RAONIC: They are great fans to have behind you. The Canadians, as well, today were amazing out there.

It's a fun atmosphere. I grew up watching sport, team sport in North America, so the rowdier the better.

Q. How much have you improved since that victory?

MILOS RAONIC: Significantly. I feel like I do a lot of things better. I feel like I understand myself better. I feel like I know how to control situations better, whether that be physically or just from the mental side.

So I have had a lot of experience since then. I'm just trying to make sort of the most of every opportunity.

A lot of the times back then I'd be winning by playing well. Now, even when I don't play my best, I can use my mental fortitude to find a way and play a bit, sort of squeeze my way through.

Q. Talk about a sleeve off. There's a suggestion that the winner gets to keep sleeve rights and the loser the next time you play maybe has to go sleeveless?

MILOS RAONIC: I think that's irrelevant (smiling).

Q. Do you think it's fair to contrast you as sort of the solid citizen guy and he's a bit of the wild child?

MILOS RAONIC: I really couldn't care less. My job is to go out and find a way to win a tennis match.

Q. Tennis‑wise how much do you think he's improved? And compare the two of you and both of your progress.

MILOS RAONIC: Well, I think it's been in different shades but it's been pretty much both players making quite a bit of progress. He's really come into the aspect of playing well and doing consistently well, especially in big moments.

I think last year I was showing a lot of consistency, but I think I have sort of stepped it up, barring injuries, and other than that, I feel like I have stepped up quite a bit since last year.

Q. There is a lot of talk about Nick on court, swearing on court, the antics and everything. Is it easy to keep your focus with other guys...

MILOS RAONIC: My job is only myself. That's my first job. I need to take care of myself. Sort of all those things are out of my control.

Q. Is it easy to block it out?

MILOS RAONIC: I believe so.

Q. What are the elements of his game that you find most challenging?

MILOS RAONIC: Well, I think it's, for both of us, it's going to be first‑strike tennis. I think we both do well, especially when serving, on probably two‑ to five‑ball rallies. I think that's sort of both our strengths.

I think it's about who can sort of manage to take it over and dictate more in those situations.

Q. Is this a big match, in your mind?

MILOS RAONIC: It's a third round of a Grand Slam. The same as every other third round of a Grand Slam. Nothing more, nothing less.

Q. Where are you on the continuum of the surgery to Queen's Club to two matches here now?

MILOS RAONIC: I'm much better obviously than I was at Queen's, but I'm still making my way back. I'm doing everything I need to to be able to keep playing better and better every single match.

Q. How was your foot today? Do you generally feel pangs here and there?

MILOS RAONIC: I have discomfort but normal postsurgery discomfort. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Q. Less this time than in your first match, or there's not that quick change?

MILOS RAONIC: No, it's been pretty consistent just because every day has been about trying to sort of put in the time on court. It's never been taking a day to recover from that aspect. When days pile up, the foot gets better, but discomfort doesn't go down.

Q. Do you need painkillers?

MILOS RAONIC: No.

Q. Do you like playing on grass?

MILOS RAONIC: I have learned to like it. It wasn't an initial feeling. I had a terrible memory here in 2011 slipping and having to go straight pretty much a few days later to hip surgery. Few years of struggles after that because I just didn't understand it.

But when I sort of got that understanding and knowledge of what I need to do, it's always been a fun challenge.

Q. I think you clocked the third‑fastest serve today in Wimbledon history. Is there any significance to you? And how much more do you think you can tap into your power?

MILOS RAONIC: No. There isn't any significance. As long as the serve doesn't come back, I'm happy. (Laughter.)

Q. The patch you were wearing on your sleeve, is that part of the deal with Tennis Canada?

MILOS RAONIC: No, that's completely separate.

Q. You played magnificent for the almost two sets. How do you explain what happened after that?

MILOS RAONIC: No, I think he came up big in important moments. He served really well, held except for the end of the first set. I felt after that he just got a bit on top of me and played better throughout the rest of the match.

Q. You were taking your chances a lot going to the net in this match. Was it to rush him, take time away from him?

MILOS RAONIC: It was to sort of take it in my control. It's what I would do pretty much against anybody, sort of push that issue.
Obviously you'd rather push it on his backhand than his forehand.

Q. There were obviously physical issues. Things there before you started the match or did it happen as the match went on?

MILOS RAONIC: Well, I'm just dealing with a lot of things. I still have some discomfort in my feet, so compensations and stuff like this just make any pain pretty much come up.
The more I got through the match the more difficult it was.
But all things said, that weren't going to stop me from trying.

Q. Was it just the feet? You seemed to be wincing when you were reaching. I wondered if there was something else...

MILOS RAONIC: No, the feet led to everything else. The feet are, I'd say, the instigator.

Q. How do you take that loss? Maybe you were not 100% ready, he's going to come back, was it frustrating because you thought you could still go through this one?

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I think so. It's disappointing. I wanted this tournament to last longer, but it is what it is.
I have the next challenge is ahead of me. Just try to make the most of those opportunities. I'm dealing with what I'm dealing with. I can't make it disappear. I can't make any magic out of it. I'm just facing it head on.

Q. It's normal pain? You have been told it was going to hurt for some time?

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it is. It's stuff I have been expecting. Maybe I had hoped it was quite a bit better by now, but it's a situation I'm in. You know, I wanted to be back, I wanted to play before Queen's, and play Queen's and all this kind of stuff.
I understood sort of what it came with, and I honestly hoped I'd be in better shape and in better condition, but I'm just trying to push myself every day.

Q. You had the green light from the doctor to play those tournaments or you said I want to play...

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, everything, every kind of discomfort I'm feeling is sort of a process of the recovery. It's not necessarily the same issue in my right foot that I had before.

Q. The velocity on your serve dropped quite a bit towards the end of your match. Was that another thing you were dealing with or it just happened?

MILOS RAONIC: Oh, it wasn't even there at the beginning of the match.

Q. (Indiscernible)?

MILOS RAONIC: It wasn't there. It's just things I was dealing with from the start of the day from even the previous match, and I tried make the most of it. That's it. I had what I had, and I put it all out there.

Q. Do you think it will affect Davis Cup?

MILOS RAONIC: No. I think now it's just about cleaning myself up as much as I can and getting myself back out there.

Q. Are you sure you're going to play Davis Cup on clay or do you think maybe it could be dangerous or...

MILOS RAONIC: No. I have no reason to believe anything is at risk because of that. Right now I just gotta sort of see where I'm at, go have a checkup, make sure things are on the right process, which I was supposed to do after four weeks which I wasn't able to do because I came here. That's a little bit delayed.
So just sort of have that checkup and take it from there.

Q. What were you thinking about some of the things that were going on on the other side of the net, talking to the crowd and gesticulating?

MILOS RAONIC: Honestly didn't see any of it.

Q. Did you see the racquet go into the crowd when he smacked it?

MILOS RAONIC: No. I heard he got warned. That's it.

Q. Does it make a difference to you when there is that kind of atmosphere? I mean, you're just playing your game and that's it?

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah. I had too many of my own things to be concerned about. That was a distraction enough on its own.
I had it in my mind what I needed to do, and considering everything, I was just trying to sort of dig that out of myself as much as I could, and unfortunately I wasn't able to do it enough.

Q. Obviously there is the element of you in this level, but were you surprised how he was able to sort of raise his level and serve so well at the end or was some of that maybe you not returning too well and...

MILOS RAONIC: I thought he played well. I think he's been, from what I have seen, which I haven't seen much because we've played so few times, he's played pretty well so far this week.
It's tough to judge in a lot of aspects. There is a lot of factors, but you could see he was calm, and he stepped up when he needed to.
My objective and my goal was to put him in those uncomfortable positions and then see where we are.

Q. You were tuning him for the first set and a half. Obviously he looked very frustrated, kept looking at it every time you hit that shot?

MILOS RAONIC: What's the question?

Q. The question is had you planned to do that or just improvised it at the time because he was cheating over to the backhand side?

MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I think honestly a lot of what was happening today, I was trying to execute some specific things. A lot of it was instinctual because of the things I was dealing with, and a lot of it was stuff happening.
I was trying to be very much in the moment, but in some situations it was tough, so fortunately for me, my instinct were pretty good.

Q. In hindsight, do you think you might have been better not to play Queen's and, say, playing Nottingham a week later or something like that?

MILOS RAONIC: No, because Queen's gave me a lot of answers for what I needed to sort of do in that week in between.
If I finished Nottingham the same shape I finished Queen's on Friday and had to play Monday, I wouldn't have been feeling that great.

Q. How much of a goal is Davis Cup for you for the Canadian team this year?

MILOS RAONIC: It's a big goal. I think it's a great opportunity for us. I think guys are playing well. I think Vasek is having a great week here. Daniel is playing better and better.
I'm sort of finding myself and time for me is just a bonus, really, for my body at this moment.
I think we are all in a great situation, and not just the next upcoming tie, but the whole year is a great opportunity, a great thing.

Q. You missed the French Open, going back on clay court, is it a chance, not to redeem yourself, but play on the clay? You didn't play during Roland Garros, but you get it in Davis Cup?

MILOS RAONIC: Of course, but I doubt the courts in Belgium are going to be at quick as Roland Garros tends to be.

Q. It's going to be slower.

MILOS RAONIC: Exactly.

Q. Is there an advantage for you?

MILOS RAONIC: Of course, I have a lot of time, and I can figure my things out. My serve is still going to go through the court at 130 plus miles an hour. The court will slow it down a bit, but it's not going to slow it down to 60 miles an hour, bounce. And the more time I have to construct the point and find my forehand is a bonus for me.
I did well this year even despite injury when it was quite slow in Monaco. And honestly I found more comfort over the last few years the slower the courts the better for me.


Q. Would the hip be the No. 1 place that was bothering you related to the foot?

MILOS RAONIC: There wasn't a place it wasn't. It's sort of goes, stagmented. First, ankle; then the hip, and then the back. Then when those things aren't working, you just put too much pressure on your shoulder, and then your shoulder hurts.

Q. It's all on the same side?

MILOS RAONIC: It's all over.

Eugenie Bouchard and Milos Raonic, Canada's two greatest players of all time, hosted the Mini Rogers Cup on Wednesday, hitting with kids on a court on a barge in Lake Ontario.

From hitting with the kids to a stunt match against each other, the Canadians had an absolute blast.

"It was really fun," Bouchard told Sportsnet. "I love anything to do with kids, and I think it's so important to get a racquet in their hands, get them out on the court playing - I think that's the first step to them falling in love with the sport, them playing more, and hopefully growing tennis in our country."

And for a bunch of photos and tweets from Wednesday's Mini Rogers Cup, check out sportsnet.ca!

Bouchard and Raonic are Canada's two most successful tennis players of all time, the first two Canadians ever to break the Top 5 in the world - Bouchard made it as high as No.5 in the world on the WTA Rankings last year, while Raonic peaked at No.4 on the ATP World Tour rankings this year.

No Canadian has ever done as well at Grand Slams, either. Bouchard became the first Canadian, male or female, to reach a Grand Slam final at Wimbledon last year, while Raonic became the first Canadian man to reach a Grand Slam semifinal, also at Wimbledon last year. Who will be the first to win a major?