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Q. Must be great to finally get the win against Stan and go through to the quarters. Tell us about your emotions.
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I think it's very positive. I'm very happy with the way I played, the way I competed, the way I turned things around after sort of having the momentum against me going into the fifth.

I'm happy the situation I've put myself in. At the same time, as happy as I am, my mind's already on what's the process for my next challenge.

Q. You didn't show many emotions, at least on the outside. Was it boiling on the inside?
MILOS RAONIC: You know what, not as much as normal because I felt very clear in what I needed to do and I believed that I could do it. I think that gave me some kind of calm and some kind of peace inside. There was a very strong belief that, you know, the opportunities I was creating, I would be able to make the most of it.

Q. What is it like usually?
MILOS RAONIC: Well, it all depends. All depends where you are. Last nine months for me, everything was a question. Some days I was hiding the disappointments I was having because of injuries, some days I was not.

But I think the more as I mature, the more I understand my game, what I need to do, the more, you know, I can keep a quiet head on my shoulders.

Q. Have you ever been attacking so much so frequently like tonight?
MILOS RAONIC: I think it was probably more at the end of it. I don't know if they count every time if the shot ends. Because for me, when I spoke with my team about it, I think I came in more than 80 times.

I don't know if it counts if you win the point with the approach or the serve because I felt like, you know, I was doing well up there. Especially some points I was more efficient than others. Maybe at one point in the third and fourth set, I was coming in too much. So I was a little bit predictable.

I was volleying the first volley really well. I was finishing the points. I was putting pressure on him. I was giving him a situation maybe that he wasn't too comfortable in.

Q. Had you started before this strategy?
MILOS RAONIC: I think it's what helped me win in Brisbane. It's what helped me win my first three matches here, is that comfort and confidence of going forward.

But not even just that. In the off-season I spent a lot of time up at the net. So it's not just about a confidence, it's about an understanding of what I need to do, where you go in certain situations, how not only to finish the points, how to defend a little bit better at the net and how to cover and move better to make the opponent think.

Q. How much did you have to kick yourself about letting that ball go that allowed him to get the break in the third set?
MILOS RAONIC: I didn't really think about it too much after at that point. I think later in the changeover I thought about it.

You know, I should have gone for it. I don't think it was a difficult volley, even if there was a little bit of doubt. I think there was maybe a little wishful thinking that it would go long. But I was able to let that go quickly.

Q. You said you're already thinking about your next match. Your thoughts on Gael?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, you know, from what I've seen so far of him, he's playing well. He's very entertaining and he's very difficult to play. He can give you complete ends of the spectrum within one game.

So it's very much of an internal match for me. I just have to take the game to him. I have to make him feel uncomfortable. Not let him get into his sort of playing comfort. If I can sort of keep up with the efficiency moving forward, I'll have definitely some opportunities.

Q. What do you think is the craziest thing you've ever seen him do on the court?
MILOS RAONIC: Probably the thing he does next (smiling).

Q. On the confidence side, you've downed two former Australian Open champs in as many weeks. How is that affecting your outlook going forward? Feeling like you have a mental momentum going?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I think it definitely helps with the process of it all. For me, I feel like I'm putting in the work and I'm getting the results from it. I'm very happy with that. It gives me some kind of ease in those difficult moments, maybe if things aren't going necessarily my way completely.

Like being down a break in the second set, that I can find solutions, give myself an opportunity. All of those kind of things coming together, it's just sort of cementing where I am with my game, which way I want to keep taking it.

Q. Stan says it takes a special person to make it to the finals; have to beat a couple of the top four. Do you feel you're that special this year?
MILOS RAONIC: We'll see how special I am. I have a big enough challenge ahead of me in two days' time. Nothing else matters outside of that.

Q. It wasn't too surprising to see Federer become more attacking after he started to be coached by Edberg. But you are now coached by Moya. He wasn't a great attacker. How do you explain it? Is Carlos convincing you you should go more to the net than you were doing before?
MILOS RAONIC: I think it's sort of outside. It's also when I had time injured and I wasn't so caught up in, you know, playing a lot of matches, traveling from tournament to tournament, when I was sort of sitting there maybe a little bit annoyed with the physical situation I was in, I was asking myself all the time, What can I do to get better?

It was something definitely I felt was necessary for me. So I think Carlos has been sort of taking the tools that me and Ricardo worked on in the winter, and he is sort of telling me, You're doing well up there; keep getting yourself up there.

He's sort of organizing my strengths, my weapons, and how to use them better.

Q. Any technical reason, any improvement in why you're volleying so well?
MILOS RAONIC: I think I'm much better with my legs. I don't sort of stop to sort of try to arm the volley. I'm just spending a lot more time up there.

Tomorrow when I go back to practice, let's say I practice for an hour, instead of going 10 minutes or 5 minutes at the net, sort of warming up, I have pretty clear goals on what I want to do and I'll give it a more respectable amount of time than I have in the past.

Q. In your next round you'll be playing a Frenchman who is so emotional, entertaining, open with his feelings. Do you ever think sometimes you'd like a little bit of that or are you comfortable with your persona, which is more in-drawn or thoughtful?
MILOS RAONIC: I guess the way I describe myself is trying to be efficient. I know from when I was a junior I learned in many tough lessons that sort of when I get too emotional for the positive I can start going to a negative too fast. That cost me too many matches. I didn't find it was the best thing for me to get the results and achieve the goals I wanted to achieve.

Do I wish I was more like somebody else? No. It just doesn't fit what works best for me.

Q. How much does it mean to win a match like that in a main center court like Rod Laver?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it's great. But for me, I think it was more you have these guys, these Grand Slam champions, guys that have been playing great, and to beat one of them for the first time at a slam, doesn't matter if that was on Court 15 or whichever court, it has a very concrete sort of message to the work I'm putting in and how I'm going about things.

Q. Based on what you said you've learned during your injuries, the last nine months, were they a good thing for your career?
MILOS RAONIC: No, because, trust me, I was very depressed a lot of the time being hurt.

Yeah, there was positives to take from it. If I was playing healthy maybe I'd be further along in the progress that I'd like to be, but I just try to make the most of the situation. There's cards you're dealt with in certain situations, and you just try to take it for what it's worth and see if you can, in certain aspects, get a lot out of yourself, try to find other ways where you can make some progress.

For me, every single day is about getting better, even if it's sleeping or whatever, it's about getting better.

Q. You talked about participating in the NBA All-Star Game. I don't know how the scheduling conflicts with here. In any case, if and when you get back there, who are the players that you would really like to play with or talk with? LeBron? Steph?
MILOS RAONIC: LeBron I've had the fortune of meeting a few times before and sort of understanding his mentality.

I think Steph would be great, especially the stratosphere that he's been in in probably the last 16 months with his game. Also, you know, he wasn't the biggest prospect growing up. He was a later draft pick. He went to a smaller school in Davidson. He wasn't picked up by the Dukes and so forth.

And, myself, I wasn't a great junior myself. I think there's a great perspective if I could learn a little bit about what it took for him to get himself to where he is right now.

Q. You talked about efficiency. No one else is more efficient than him these days, would you say?
MILOS RAONIC: I don't know if it's that nobody else is more efficient. I think he's done a spectacular job in redefining how athletic of a sport basketball has become. You have a machine like LeBron who can, with three strides, cover half a court; can move at 250 or more pounds better than most guys on a tennis court move at 170 pounds.

You have him that's taken it pretty much to old traditional ways of basketball, of how good is your shot and trying to sort of create those spaces for himself. It's exciting to see.

Q. The stress on the body to attack so relentlessly for five sets, the up and back as opposed to the more rally-type tennis is very different. What did you do in the off-season to make you think you could keep it up for five sets?
MILOS RAONIC: Well, like I said from the start of the year, I'm in much better shape than I've ever been. I took the time and I spent time up at the net. I spent time doing these drills, maybe not to the extent of as many times as I came in today, but the time's been put in there.

Today being the first time I've done it for so much, I'm very happy with the way my body feels. I think the only thing I felt a little bit is a little bit sort of sore in the back, getting down all those times, which isn't something I've necessarily gotten used to through many matches.

But that's something that I can get back. My legs are great. My body's in great shape. At the same time, as much as I was up at the net, you're not really lugging, sort of forcing too many balls. You try to make contact in front of you. You try to find the open spots on the court.

Milos Raonic def Stan Wawrinka 6-4 6-3 5-7 4-6 6-3

Q. Must be great to finally get the win against Stan and go through to the quarters. Tell us about your emotions.
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I think it's very positive. I'm very happy with the way I played, the way I competed, the way I turned things around after sort of having the momentum against me going into the fifth.

I'm happy the situation I've put myself in. At the same time, as happy as I am, my mind's already on what's the process for my next challenge.

Q. You didn't show many emotions, at least on the outside. Was it boiling on the inside?
MILOS RAONIC: You know what, not as much as normal because I felt very clear in what I needed to do and I believed that I could do it. I think that gave me some kind of calm and some kind of peace inside. There was a very strong belief that, you know, the opportunities I was creating, I would be able to make the most of it.

Q. What is it like usually?
MILOS RAONIC: Well, it all depends. All depends where you are. Last nine months for me, everything was a question. Some days I was hiding the disappointments I was having because of injuries, some days I was not.

But I think the more as I mature, the more I understand my game, what I need to do, the more, you know, I can keep a quiet head on my shoulders.

Q. Have you ever been attacking so much so frequently like tonight?
MILOS RAONIC: I think it was probably more at the end of it. I don't know if they count every time if the shot ends. Because for me, when I spoke with my team about it, I think I came in more than 80 times.

I don't know if it counts if you win the point with the approach or the serve because I felt like, you know, I was doing well up there. Especially some points I was more efficient than others. Maybe at one point in the third and fourth set, I was coming in too much. So I was a little bit predictable.

I was volleying the first volley really well. I was finishing the points. I was putting pressure on him. I was giving him a situation maybe that he wasn't too comfortable in.

Q. Had you started before this strategy?
MILOS RAONIC: I think it's what helped me win in Brisbane. It's what helped me win my first three matches here, is that comfort and confidence of going forward.

But not even just that. In the off-season I spent a lot of time up at the net. So it's not just about a confidence, it's about an understanding of what I need to do, where you go in certain situations, how not only to finish the points, how to defend a little bit better at the net and how to cover and move better to make the opponent think.

Q. How much did you have to kick yourself about letting that ball go that allowed him to get the break in the third set?
MILOS RAONIC: I didn't really think about it too much after at that point. I think later in the changeover I thought about it.

You know, I should have gone for it. I don't think it was a difficult volley, even if there was a little bit of doubt. I think there was maybe a little wishful thinking that it would go long. But I was able to let that go quickly.

Q. You said you're already thinking about your next match. Your thoughts on Gael?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, you know, from what I've seen so far of him, he's playing well. He's very entertaining and he's very difficult to play. He can give you complete ends of the spectrum within one game.

So it's very much of an internal match for me. I just have to take the game to him. I have to make him feel uncomfortable. Not let him get into his sort of playing comfort. If I can sort of keep up with the efficiency moving forward, I'll have definitely some opportunities.

Q. What do you think is the craziest thing you've ever seen him do on the court?
MILOS RAONIC: Probably the thing he does next (smiling).

Q. On the confidence side, you've downed two former Australian Open champs in as many weeks. How is that affecting your outlook going forward? Feeling like you have a mental momentum going?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I think it definitely helps with the process of it all. For me, I feel like I'm putting in the work and I'm getting the results from it. I'm very happy with that. It gives me some kind of ease in those difficult moments, maybe if things aren't going necessarily my way completely.

Like being down a break in the second set, that I can find solutions, give myself an opportunity. All of those kind of things coming together, it's just sort of cementing where I am with my game, which way I want to keep taking it.

Q. Stan says it takes a special person to make it to the finals; have to beat a couple of the top four. Do you feel you're that special this year?
MILOS RAONIC: We'll see how special I am. I have a big enough challenge ahead of me in two days' time. Nothing else matters outside of that.

Q. It wasn't too surprising to see Federer become more attacking after he started to be coached by Edberg. But you are now coached by Moya. He wasn't a great attacker. How do you explain it? Is Carlos convincing you you should go more to the net than you were doing before?
MILOS RAONIC: I think it's sort of outside. It's also when I had time injured and I wasn't so caught up in, you know, playing a lot of matches, traveling from tournament to tournament, when I was sort of sitting there maybe a little bit annoyed with the physical situation I was in, I was asking myself all the time, What can I do to get better?

It was something definitely I felt was necessary for me. So I think Carlos has been sort of taking the tools that me and Ricardo worked on in the winter, and he is sort of telling me, You're doing well up there; keep getting yourself up there.

He's sort of organizing my strengths, my weapons, and how to use them better.

Q. Any technical reason, any improvement in why you're volleying so well?
MILOS RAONIC: I think I'm much better with my legs. I don't sort of stop to sort of try to arm the volley. I'm just spending a lot more time up there.

Tomorrow when I go back to practice, let's say I practice for an hour, instead of going 10 minutes or 5 minutes at the net, sort of warming up, I have pretty clear goals on what I want to do and I'll give it a more respectable amount of time than I have in the past.

Q. In your next round you'll be playing a Frenchman who is so emotional, entertaining, open with his feelings. Do you ever think sometimes you'd like a little bit of that or are you comfortable with your persona, which is more in-drawn or thoughtful?
MILOS RAONIC: I guess the way I describe myself is trying to be efficient. I know from when I was a junior I learned in many tough lessons that sort of when I get too emotional for the positive I can start going to a negative too fast. That cost me too many matches. I didn't find it was the best thing for me to get the results and achieve the goals I wanted to achieve.

Do I wish I was more like somebody else? No. It just doesn't fit what works best for me.

Q. How much does it mean to win a match like that in a main center court like Rod Laver?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it's great. But for me, I think it was more you have these guys, these Grand Slam champions, guys that have been playing great, and to beat one of them for the first time at a slam, doesn't matter if that was on Court 15 or whichever court, it has a very concrete sort of message to the work I'm putting in and how I'm going about things.

Q. Based on what you said you've learned during your injuries, the last nine months, were they a good thing for your career?
MILOS RAONIC: No, because, trust me, I was very depressed a lot of the time being hurt.

Yeah, there was positives to take from it. If I was playing healthy maybe I'd be further along in the progress that I'd like to be, but I just try to make the most of the situation. There's cards you're dealt with in certain situations, and you just try to take it for what it's worth and see if you can, in certain aspects, get a lot out of yourself, try to find other ways where you can make some progress.

For me, every single day is about getting better, even if it's sleeping or whatever, it's about getting better.

Q. You talked about participating in the NBA All-Star Game. I don't know how the scheduling conflicts with here. In any case, if and when you get back there, who are the players that you would really like to play with or talk with? LeBron? Steph?
MILOS RAONIC: LeBron I've had the fortune of meeting a few times before and sort of understanding his mentality.

I think Steph would be great, especially the stratosphere that he's been in in probably the last 16 months with his game. Also, you know, he wasn't the biggest prospect growing up. He was a later draft pick. He went to a smaller school in Davidson. He wasn't picked up by the Dukes and so forth.

And, myself, I wasn't a great junior myself. I think there's a great perspective if I could learn a little bit about what it took for him to get himself to where he is right now.

Q. You talked about efficiency. No one else is more efficient than him these days, would you say?
MILOS RAONIC: I don't know if it's that nobody else is more efficient. I think he's done a spectacular job in redefining how athletic of a sport basketball has become. You have a machine like LeBron who can, with three strides, cover half a court; can move at 250 or more pounds better than most guys on a tennis court move at 170 pounds.

You have him that's taken it pretty much to old traditional ways of basketball, of how good is your shot and trying to sort of create those spaces for himself. It's exciting to see.

Q. The stress on the body to attack so relentlessly for five sets, the up and back as opposed to the more rally-type tennis is very different. What did you do in the off-season to make you think you could keep it up for five sets?
MILOS RAONIC: Well, like I said from the start of the year, I'm in much better shape than I've ever been. I took the time and I spent time up at the net. I spent time doing these drills, maybe not to the extent of as many times as I came in today, but the time's been put in there.

Today being the first time I've done it for so much, I'm very happy with the way my body feels. I think the only thing I felt a little bit is a little bit sort of sore in the back, getting down all those times, which isn't something I've necessarily gotten used to through many matches.

But that's something that I can get back. My legs are great. My body's in great shape. At the same time, as much as I was up at the net, you're not really lugging, sort of forcing too many balls. You try to make contact in front of you. You try to find the open spots on the court.

Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers reveals how Milos Raonic is upping his game early in the 2016 season

Identifying the difference between good and great is not easily done with the naked eye. When a player steps up to a new level, it is far easier to find the reason why on a stats sheet than piecing together his great play watching from the side of the court.
Milos Raonic is a perfect example.
Raonic has had a magnificent run through to the quarter-finals of the Australian Open this week. His fourth-round victory over San Wawrinka in five sets was particularly impressive.
So what exactly is driving Raonic’s deep run Down Under?
The best way to uncover his improvement is with an Infosys ATP Beyond the Numbers analysis.
Raonic made exactly the same amount of first serves (64 per cent) during the 2015 season as he has made in the first four rounds in Melbourne, but he is winning two per cent more (83 per cent to 81 per cent) in Melbourne this year.
You may think the hot weather conditions have something to do with that, but it’s actually been a very mild to cool Australian Open so far.
Raonic's performance on second serve is identical for the 2015 season and this year's Australian Open, winning 58 per cent of those points. It’s amazing how some things change, and some things stay exactly the same. Service games won is also identical, at 94 per cent - 67/71 in the run to the quarter-finals.
Raonic is widely admired for his prowess on the serving side of the equation, but it’s really his improved returning this tournament that is specifically helping him lift his game.
In the 2015 season, Raonic won 24 per cent returning first serves. In Melbourne, through four rounds, that has leaped up to 32 per cent. Someone has been working on their defensive returns.
The same improvement can be found returning second serves.
In 2015, Raonic won 44 per cent facing second serves. That’s simply too low. The average so far in Melbourne into the quarter-finals is 49 per cent. That’s exactly where Raonic now finds himself, and that’s very bad news for all of his opponents.
Imagine facing one of the best servers in the game, who also has a return game that is not a weakness. That’s the full package.
The improvement in returning also naturally leads to more break points being converted. In the 2015 season, Raonic was at 33 per cent. So far in Melbourne, he is 38 per cent.
The Canadian is showing massive improvement in return games won, moving the dial from 12 per cent in 2015 to 19 per cent in his first four Australian Open matches.
Raonic now plays Gael Monfils in the quarter-finals, for a shot at the winner of Andy Murray and David Ferrer.
Raonic has lost to Monfils twice, so this will be yet another excellent test of the Canadian’s improvement. Monfils must do all he can to win the opening point of Raonic’s service games, because if he doesn’t, the metrics won’t be kind to him.
From January 2015, Raonic has gone up 15/0 521 times in his service games. He has won 506 (97 per cent) of those games. If he gets to 30/0, which he has 363 times, he has won 357 (99 per cent) of them.
If things get close, as they normally do in the second week of Grand Slam championships, it’s interesting to see how many times a player can be down set point, and still win the set.
Since January 2015, Raonic has done it 29 times. Monfils has done it 32 times.
This is the first seed Monfils has had to play in the tournament and it's a great opportunity for both players to reach their first semi-final Down Under.

Q. Congratulations. How did you feel about that match?
MILOS RAONIC: I felt good. You know, I did the things well. Even in that second set before I got broken I created some opportunities. He came up with some big serves. I don't know if it was two or three opportunities that I had. I had another opportunity later in that set.

I was creating a bunch of chances for myself. I made good use of a few of them. I then continued to make the most of those little leads.

Q. How did you feel in a match like that just being back, second time back in a big match on Rod Laver against a guy maybe you're expected to beat?
MILOS RAONIC: I felt good, you know, especially that I took care of the things I need to take care of. I was dictating I felt most of the time. I was hitting my shots well. I was quite efficient off the baseline. When I had the chance, I came forward. Closed shots off there.

Maybe a little bit passive in the second set, but in the third I sort of turned that around for the better. Could have been a little bit maybe more forthcoming in the fourth as well, but I have to be happy with the way I dealt with things, how I played, and how I backed up the performance from two days ago.

Q. What does it mean for you to be back in a Grand Slam semifinal after the tough year you had last season?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it's a very positive thing if you look at the big picture. Right now in this moment alone it's a great opportunity for me. I had a little bit of a disappointing semifinal two years ago now, and sort of just want to change that story around and give myself another go with more experience and where I feel like I'm a better player than I was two years ago.

Q. Was there a match in Brisbane or here that really told you you were playing at a higher level and gave you the confidence?
MILOS RAONIC: I would probably say the second match in Brisbane. It was sort of a big click. Even though against Bernard I struggled in the third match, I felt like I was in control of the match and so forth. I was playing on my terms. I got ahead in a lot games to 30 first. All those things were the right things.

I was putting myself in those positions to get ahead and making more and more of those opportunities count. First you got to get yourself there and then see if you can make it count.

Q. In a previous press conference you said Carlos Moya is a kind the organizer of your team. Talk a little bit more about him.
MILOS RAONIC: I don't think it's an organizer of the team. I think it's more of an organizer in the way I go about my game. I think that's what he's sort of bringing to it. I think Riccardo is more the one that's going to be doing the heavy load work. Riccardo, at the end of the day, is as much of a coach as anybody on tour. He's done it his whole life. He's done it with so many different players.

He likes to be there as well during the boring weeks in the middle of nowhere sitting six hours on court. So I think he's going to do that kind of stuff.

I think Carlos is going to take on more of the task of making me more efficient with my game when I have the tools, how to use them, how to go about matches with certain players. He's played a lot of these guys, especially the ones you'll play in the latter stages of tournaments. Just going to give me that peace of mind, efficiency, and maybe process of work throughout tournaments. I think that's what I'm looking to gain from him the most.

Q. You've been talking about all you really want to do is follow your plan, and whatever your plan is certainly seems to be working. Could you share a little bit with us what your plan is?
MILOS RAONIC: In what sense?

Q. For the season. You said that you wanted to follow your plan for the season.
MILOS RAONIC: In what context did I say it?

Q. In a previous press conference.
MILOS RAONIC: I think probably what I'm probably referring to -- I'm sorry if I can't recall the exact context -- but what I'm referring to is for me, there is sort of six monumental moments for this year that I really want to put a lot of the attention to: the four being the slams, the Olympics, and Toronto is a big one for me.

I think it's about really making sure that even those weeks, those tournaments, like I am here, improving each day. I think I've taken a lot of big steps forward since I've been healthy and able to make the most of hard work and the grit and effort I put in on court.

I think that's pretty much it. Constant progress. Some days may be a recovery progress; some days may be working on my backhand. Who knows what it is? But that constant progress which I feel like I've been hitting the mark on for a long period of time, disregarding my injury, is what I look for every single day.

Q. In terms of your groundstrokes and movement, do you think you've improved them and there has been an upgrade there?
MILOS RAONIC: Significantly. I think I know better how to use my groundstrokes. But at the same time, because I'm getting to the ball in better position, it's easier. I don't feel like I'm getting hustled around the court that much. I feel like I can find my way back. I don't have to go for big shots on the run. I can sort of neutralize a little bit better.

At the end of the day, as well as I do that, that's never going to be what wins me matches. It's about doing what I can to get ahead in points and be the aggressor and take it to my opponents.

Q. What are the best references from your previous Murray matches?
MILOS RAONIC: I think probably look back at the last one we played in -- London I think was the last time we played in the World Tour Finals, that one.

US Open is one that definitely is going to garner some attention as well.

As much as I look back on it, even before I went on court today I was paying attention to what he was doing. Because far from where we were 14 months ago, we're both very different and I think improved players from then.

So I have certain aspects that I would like to manipulate and use my game in, and I'm sure he's going to try to do a lot of different things, too. I think it's going to be a race to who can get in the comfort zone of themselves first.

Q. Carlos was talking the other day about how you've worked on your aggressive game and going to the net and how you were doing well up there, but also that you need to find the balance and not always make it predictable for your opponent that you're going attack. Against someone like Andy, a good passer and defender, how important is that balance going to be?
MILOS RAONIC: Definitely. But even today it was important. I don't think I served and volleyed as much as I would've last time. I think just really, however the match plays out itself, is reassessing and being in that moment and knowing how to go about things.

Not really being stubborn on you got to do this and this. It's about the constant adjustments you make throughout a match. It's three out of five sets. A lot can happen. A lot of different levels of tennis for three out of five sets as well.

It's about when you can step up, take advantage, and different ways to go about that.

Q. I saw you were at an art museum a few days ago. How important was it for you to maybe use that day in between matches to maybe switch off a bit and also to stay focused on the next match and step back?
MILOS RAONIC: It's something I'm getting better with. I can be very obsessive when it comes to the process and what I need to do for the next match. I am constantly considering things.

That was definitely a nice escape from myself, and I got it participate in something that I really enjoy and a passion that's definitely grown for me over the last two years, I would say.

Q. Was it Warhol or the Chinese?
MILOS RAONIC: I saw a lot of Warhol exhibits before. It was more of the Weiwei installations I wanted to see, especially the Infinite Bicycle one that was in the center of the museum.

Q. In a word, your take on that was?
MILOS RAONIC: Magnificent in many ways. I think that whatever iteration you see of Andy Warhol's life has sort of been redefined over many years due to his unfortunate passing, but Weiwei's story is constantly building and you're hearing something different.

There is a lot I'm learning about his house arrest and all these kind of things, his rebel behavior towards establishment and so forth. I think the most impressive thing is how grand his installations are. It's tough for somebody to put it in their own home, but they speaks wonders I believe.

Canadian through to second Grand Slam semi-final
He has been a trailblazer for Canadian tennis throughout his career and Milos Raonic carved out another slice of history for his country on Wednesday night in Melbourne as he became the first Canadian man to reach the Australian Open semi-finals.
The Toronto native defeated Gael Monfils 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to set a semi-final clash with Andy Murray, who earlier beat David Ferrer.
Raonic has a 3-3 FedEx ATP Head2Head record against Murray, beating the two-time Grand Slam champion most recently in Indian Wells two years ago. Raonic holds a 19-41 record against Top 10 opposition, claiming his 19th win last weekend when he beat Stan Wawrinka in the fourth round at Melbourne Park.
The 25-year-old Raonic is bidding to reach his first Grand Slam final, to play the winner of Novak Djokovic vs. Roger Federer. The right-hander played his first major semi-final two years ago at Wimbledon, falling to Federer.
"It's a very positive thing if you look at the big picture," said Raonic. "Right now in this moment alone it's a great opportunity for me. I had a little bit of a disappointing semi-final two years ago, and sort of just want to change that story around and give myself another go with more experience and where I feel like I'm a better player than I was two years ago."

Raonic highlights courtesy AusOpen.com
Having lost his only two meetings with Monfils, Raonic stepped out under a closed roof on the Rod Laver Arena with intent. The calmer of the two in the early exchanges, Raonic benefitted from tentative play by Monfils in the fourth game to break for a 3-1 lead. It was all the Toronto native needed to wrap up the first set in 35 minutes.
Monfils raised his level in the second set, though, and was rewarded with a service break in the sixth game. The Frenchman then saved a break point in the ninth game before holding on to level the match.
Raonic struck immediately in the third set and his early break proved decisive as he went on to reclaim the lead in the contest. A break in the fifth game of the fourth set put the Canadian well on his way to claiming victory in two hours and 17 minutes, having hit 46 winners to 35 unforced errors.

"I felt good, especially that I took care of the things I need to take care of," said Raonic. "I was dictating I felt most of the time. I was hitting my shots well. I was quite efficient off the baseline. When I had the chance, I came forward. Closed shots off there.

"Maybe I was a little bit passive in the second set, but in the third I sort of turned that around for the better. Could have been a little bit maybe more forthcoming in the fourth as well, but I have to be happy with the way I dealt with things, how I played, and how I backed up the performance from two days ago."
The 25-year-old Raonic is currently on a nine-match winning streak, having opened his 2016 ATP World Tour campaign with victory over Federer in the Brisbane final.
Monfils was bidding to reach his first major semi-final since a final four showing at Roland Garros eight years ago (l. to Federer). The Frenchman has not defeated a Top 20 player at a Grand Slam since the 2014 US Open (d. Dimitrov in R4).
"I think I showed quality and strength in this tournament, and I have a strong belief that I will keep going this season like this," said Monfils. "He played good. Very aggressive. But it was not a bad match from me. Happy I have been improving to play him next time."

From his earliest sporting adventures, Milos Raonic has worked diligently to mix with the big kids. Now he's there

Milos Raonic has a hockey injury.

There’s a cluster of scars on the Canadian’s knee that have been there since he was eight, a relic from the days he used to play street hockey with the older kids in the north Toronto suburb of Thornhill. He had taught himself the game and moves from books and videos, practised before school and after dinner, and a matter of days after strapping on his inline skates for the first time he was carving his way around the local 12-year-olds.

He was a neighbourhood sensation – not just for his precocious talent, but his determination. When he fell so hard that his knee would later require stitches, Raonic played for another three hours before getting his dad to take him to the emergency room.

Learning fast to mix it with the bigger kids comes naturally to Raonic. He was the first player born in the 1990s to claim an ATP title when he won San Jose in 2011, just days after breaking into the top 100 after reaching the fourth round in Melbourne. Today the 25-year-old is the youngest player in the top 15, the first Canadian man to reach the Australian Open semifinals and is undefeated in 2016 ahead of his showdown with Andy Murray, having reconnected with the net game he played as a youngster in the mould of his idol, Pete Sampras.

Murray to provide Raonic with the truest test

Back then, Raonic banked 90 per cent of all his winnings, aware then that he would one day be paying for his own career. He does the same now, knowing that life on tour lasts only so long. He lives in Monte Carlo and has a two-storey apartment in Toronto, where he moved from Montenegro at the age of three, but escapes to New York, catching up with friends and playing a little basketball – at 6’5”, you would expect him to be a useful addition to most pick-up games.

By his own admission he is attracted to ambition; his girlfriend, the Canadian model Danielle Knudson, joined him in Abu Dhabi and Brisbane before leaving Melbourne shortly after his quarterfinal win over Gael Monfils. “Back in NYC, back to work,” she wrote on Instagram the morning of the semifinal, having playfully posed in Raonic’s Australian Open outfit in an earlier post. “This Is Your Year,” read the caption. “Keep Killing It.”



During the tournament, Raonic and Knudson visited the Andy Warhol | Ai Weiwei exhibition in Melbourne, where he was fascinated by Weiwei’s Forever Bicycles installation – fast cars don’t interest him, but he is gaining an appreciation for fine art. Switching off from the demands of life as a professional athlete, however, has never come naturally.

“It's something I'm getting better with,” Raonic said. “I can be very obsessive when it comes to the process and what I need to do for the next match. I am constantly considering things.

“That was definitely a nice escape from myself, and I got to participate in something that I really enjoy and a passion that's definitely grown for me over the last two years, I would say.”

GALLERY: Raonic relaxes with fine-art escape

The appointment of Carlos Moya as his new head coach has allowed Raonic to curb his obsessive nature on court. While Riccardo Piatti continues to hone his strokes, the Spaniard, who replaced Ivan Ljubicic in the off-season as the Croatian began working with Roger Federer, has set out to instil a calmness and clarity to Raonic’s game – an ‘efficiency’, as the Canadian has phrased it time and again in Australia, as he seeks to make up for his slide outside the top 10 after an injury-hit 2015 campaign.

“I think Carlos is going to take on more of the task of making me more efficient with my game when I have the tools, how to use them, how to go about matches with certain players,” said Raonic.

“He's played a lot of these guys, especially the ones you'll play in the latter stages of tournaments. It’s just going to give me that peace of mind, efficiency, and maybe process of work throughout tournaments. I think that's what I'm looking to gain from him the most.”

Now nine months removed from foot surgery and having recovered from a back injury, Raonic is once again laser-focused on becoming Canada’s first male Grand Slam champion.

Serve-volleying returns with a vengeance

“For me, there are six monumental moments for this year that I really want to put a lot of the attention to: the four being the Slams, the Olympics, and Toronto is a big one for me,” he said.

The key, his mantra, is “constant progress. Some days may be a recovery progress; some days may be working on my backhand. Who knows what it is? But that constant progress which I feel like I've been hitting the mark on for a long period of time, disregarding my injury, is what I look for every single day.”

The true test of his progress awaits him on Friday against world No.2 Murray, a four-time Australian Open finalist and two-time Grand Slam champion. The duo have each won three of their past six encounters, Murray winning the last two.

“I have a great challenge ahead of me, but I believe I can find a solution,” Raonic said. “I’ll put in a great effort, I can’t wait to make the most of this opportunity.”

Mixing it with the big kids. Right where he always wanted to be.

Q. Can you tell us what the injury was and when you first felt it?
MILOS RAONIC: Just a difficulty to push off my leg with my adductor midway through the third set. That's what it was.

Q. Must be a very unpleasant way to lose when you're playing so well.
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, it's unfortunate. Probably the most heartbroken I felt on court, but that's what it is.

Q. Have you had this before?
MILOS RAONIC: I struggled with it a little bit in Brisbane, but it was not an issue so far in Melbourne.

Q. Did you think you still had a chance even though you were injured?
MILOS RAONIC: I think maybe that's why I sort of lashed out after I did at the start of the fifth set. I guess that was sort of just the whole frustration of everything sort of getting out.

I don't think that's like myself to do, but sometimes it's a little bit too much to keep in.

Q. Are you saying that's when you realised it wasn't going to happen for you?
MILOS RAONIC: I was going to fight and see what I could make of it, but it wasn't looking that great.

Q. First three sets were pretty high level of tennis. Do you take any positives despite the disappointment?
MILOS RAONIC: I'm in a much better state where I was 18 months ago when I was in my first semifinal of a Grand Slam.

So I think I was giving myself chances and I was fighting hard. I was doing things right. It was just sort of how the story played out after.

Q. Did you ask the medical people whether there was a risk of you making it worse by playing on till the end?
MILOS RAONIC: No. I couldn't have cared less what could have happened on the court. I was in my second semifinal. I was in a much better position than where I was last time. Regardless of what situation I was in, I was going to play and try to do whatever I could.

Q. How did you feel in the first three sets in terms of the level you were competing with him at?
MILOS RAONIC: Yeah, I felt good. I sort of dipped a little bit too much on my return. I think I was forcing a little bit too much. When I started to relax a little bit I started returning better.

And even into the second set, towards the end of the third, I started to figure things out to give myself chances there.

I'm happy with where my tennis is at, I just wish I could play...tennis.

Q. Today's match must be very disappointing, but if you look back on this tournament and Brisbane, you might be quite positive and maybe you can take away something positive from these three weeks.
MILOS RAONIC: No, trust me, if this didn't happen 20 minutes ago, there's a lot more positive to take from the situation than there is negative by magnitudes.

With the way I've sort of started off this year after the difficulties I had, whatever it was, three months ago, not finishing the year, many other aspects, not knowing where I stood, this was the most ideal way to start.

You can't take away that sort of hurt from the way the story played out today.

Q. Do you have any idea whether it will affect your tournament schedule for the next few weeks?
MILOS RAONIC: No. I have not spoken to anybody. Honestly, I'm not in the mental state where I would be seeing a doctor to get a recommendation today. Maybe that happens tomorrow or whenever I feel like I'm ready to face that situation.

When that comes, I'll deal with it accordingly.

Q. Did you take any antiinflammatories to try to get through?
MILOS RAONIC: I did. Just basic things, what the doctor gave me when I was in the room getting treated.

Q. Does it feel any worse now than it did when you were out there playing?
MILOS RAONIC: No. It wasn't bothering me walking or so forth. It's just I couldn't push off. I couldn't get up to serve and I couldn't change direction. That was the difficult part.

Q. Have you had a chance to speak to your team since coming off?
MILOS RAONIC: No. Well, probably they would have liked to spoke, but I'm just not in a state where I can probably have a conversation.

Thank you, guys. Appreciate it.

Milos Raonic is through to his third ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final after defeating David Goffin 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 on Saturday at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.
The Canadian will look to win his first Masters 1000 title when he takes on either Novak Djokovic in Sunday's final. The 25-year-old Raonic has made an emphatic return from the adductor tear that sidelined him through February.
The Toronto native had made a career-best start to his 2016 campaign, winning his eighth ATP World Tour title in Brisbane, where he defeated Roger Federer in the final, before upsetting Stan Wawrinka en route to his second Grand Slam semi-final showing at the Australian Open (l. to Murray), where he suffered the leg injury.
Raonic was contesting his second successive Indian Wells semi-final (l. to Federer 2015) and made a strong start against Goffin, whom he had lost to in their only previous meeting two years ago in Basel.
The right-hander broke Goffin in the fourth game of the match for a 3-1 lead and saved a break point in the seventh game before going on to seal the opener. But Goffin struck back, engineering only the third break of Raonic's serve this tournament as he went up 3-1 in the second set.
The Belgian couldn’t hold on to his initial advantage, as Raonic immediately struck back, but the diminutive Goffin again broke Raonic in the eighth game and served out to level the match, becoming the first player to take a set off Raonic in the tournament.
Raonic responded immediately with a break of serve at the start of the third set and did not let up, punishing the Belgian for winning only 18 per cent of his second serve points to claim victory in just over two hours.
"I feel like I did things right," said Raonic. "I sort of lost my way a little bit in the second set, and it's important to me sort of to be able to recognise that and get things back on the right track and play and finish off with some good tennis like I did.
"I feel like even when I'm not playing my best [this year] I'm able to find the answer and the solutions. I feel like I'm competing well. I feel like I'm dealing with the situations much better.
"Definitely have been playing higher level this year, but I think also when I have had those difficult moments or let's say some kind of crisis throughout matches, I have found solutions better. I think I have been much more regimented about that and a lot more disciplined with myself and a lot more understanding about the way I need to go about things during the match. And also analyzing and adjusting and accepting things during matches."
The 25-year-old Goffin is the first Belgian man to reach the semi-finals at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The right-hander almost exited in the second round, saving two match points to edge Next Generation star Frances Tiafoe, before upsetting Wawrinka and Marin Cilic to reach the final four.
"I think in the second I was just better than him," said Goffin. "I was starting to return a lot of balls. I was really aggressive on his second serve, and it was really effective in the second.

"Against a player like Milos it's always frustrating when you have the feeling that during the match you're better than him, but he has an amazing serve and sometimes you lose one or two shots in a game and then he has the break. He started to serve better until the end of the match.

"Maybe I just lost my concentration during three or four points and then that's why I lost the match."
Raonic’s two previous Masters 1000 finals came in Montreal in 2013 (l. to Nadal) and Paris in 2014 (l. to Djokovic). This time, the Canadian is hopeful he can come closer to his first title. "I want it to be a lot different than it has been the last two times," said Raonic.

"I think I have a better understanding of what I need to do. I think I have more tools, and just like today I can be a lot more accepting and I can understand how things happen during a match and I can adjust, which I didn't do well the last two times.

"I have obviously a big challenge ahead of me, but I have been pretty good this year at finding solutions."

FINAL PREVIEW: World No. 1 and four-time BNP Paribas Open champion Novak Djokovic takes on No. 12 seed Milos Raonic on Sunday in the championship. Djokovic has won all five previous meetings (13-1 in sets). This will be the second final between the two. In Paris-Bercy in 2014, Djokovic won 62 63. Their last meeting came in the QF at the Australian Open last year with Djokovic winning 76 64 62. Both players have dropped one set in five matches en route to the final.
Djokovic is attempting to capture a record fifth BNP Paribas Open title and record-tying 27th career ATP Masters 1000 crown (w/Nadal). Djokovic has won his last 16 matches in Indian Wells and 15 in ATP Masters 1000 tournaments since his last loss in the 2015 Cincinnati final to Federer. The 28-year-old Serb is appearing in his 10th straight ATP Masters 1000 tournament final he’s competed in (DNP ’15 Madrid) going back to 2014 Paris-Bercy. He’s 7-2 in Masters 1000 finals during that stretch. Djokovic comes into the final with a 21-1 match record on the season.
Raonic is appearing in his third career ATP Masters 1000 final (0-2) and 17th overall (8-8) in his career. The 25-year-old Canadian is trying to become the first player born in the 1990s to capture an ATP Masters 1000 title. He was runner-up in Montreal in 2013 (l. to Nadal) and in Paris-Bercy in 2014 (l. to Djokovic). Raonic enters the final off to a career-best 14-1 start this season. He opened the year by winning the Brisbane title (d. Federer) and following with SF at Australian Open (l. to Murray in five sets).
WHAT’S AT STAKE:
Winner $1,028,300 and 1,000 Emirates ATP Rankings points
Runner-up $501,815 and 600 Emirates ATP Rankings points
FINALS HISTORY:
Djokovic is bidding for a 27th ATP Masters 1000 title (26-12) and 62nd career title (61-26)
Raonic is bidding for a 1st ATP Masters 1000 title (0-2) and 9th career title (8-8)
DJOKOVIC EYES 5TH TITLE: Djokovic is seeking a record fifth Indian Wells crown, having won here in 2008 (d. Fish), 2011 (d. Nadal) and 2014-15 (d. Federer).
TOP FIVE CHAMPIONS: In 14 of the past 15 years, a Top 5 player has emerged victorious at the BNP Paribas Open with 2010 champion Ivan Ljubicic the only exception. He was ranked No. 26. Djokovic is looking to extend the Top 5 streak with a title on Sunday. Djokovic is one of three active players (Federer-4, Nadal-3) who have won the Indian Wells title.
BIG FOUR DOMINANCE: The ‘Big Four’ of Djokovic, Murray, Federer and Nadal have won 48 of the last 52 ATP Masters 1000 tournaments, which dates back to Nadal’s triumph at Monte-Carlo in 2010. The only other players to emerge with an ATP Masters 1000 title are: Robin Soderling (2010 Paris), David Ferrer (2012 Paris), Stan Wawrinka (2014 Monte-Carlo) and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (2014 Toronto).
FINAL FEDEX ATP HEAD 2 HEADS:
[1] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs [12] Milos Raonic (CAN)
Djokovic Leads 5-0
Djokovic 2016 FastFacts
W (2): Doha (d. Nadal); Australian Open (d. Murray); QF: Dubai (l. to Lopez)
YTD W-L: 20-1 (20-1 on hard)
YTD Titles: 2 / Career Titles: 61
Date of Birth: May 22, 1987
Emirates ATP Ranking: 1 (Career-High)
Indian Wells W-L (Best Result): 45-6 (2008, 2011, 2014-2015 Champion)
• 2016 Indian Wells: Since losing 1st set in opening match vs. Fratangelo, has won 10 sets. Avenged only loss of
season and did not face a BP in 63 63 win over [18] Lopez in 4R. Then beat [7] Tsonga 76(2) 76(2) in QFs and [4]
Nadal 76(5) 62 in SFs. Has won 16 matches in a row in IW since loss to del Potro in 2013 SFs
• Tournament Note: No. 1 or No. 2 in Emirates ATP Rankings each week since winning 2011 title and 190th week at
No. 1 in career (89 straight weeks since July 7, 2014). Appearing in 6th career final (4-1) and trying to become first
5-time winner in event history
• Enters with a 21-1 match record on season and looking to become first three-time winner in 2016
• In January, tied Emerson’s all-time record with 6th Australian Open title (d. No. 2 Murray)
• Moved into tie with Laver and Borg for 5th all-time with 11 Grand Slam men’s singles titles
• Won a 5-set match en route to title for 7th time at a major, overcoming 100 unforced errors in 4R (d. Simon)
• Captured 60th career title to start season at Doha, not dropping a set all week (d. No. 5 Nadal)
• Became 3rd active player to reach 700 wins by beating Jaziri in Dubai 2R on Feb. 24 (also Federer, Nadal)
• Fell 1 shy of Lendl’s Open-Era record 18 straight finals when eye problem forced ret in Dubai QF (l. to Lopez)
• Had not retired since 2011 Davis Cup SF vs. del Potro, a stretch of 350 matches (318-32)
• Defeated Nedovyesov in 3 sets and Kukushkin in 5 sets to help Serbia beat Kazakhstan 3-2 in Davis Cup 1R
• Appearing in 10th straight ATP Masters 1000 final (DNP ’15 Madrid) going back to ’14 Paris-Bercy and has a 7-2
finals record during that stretch. Last year won a record six Masters 1000 titles. Overall is 61-26 in career finals and
26-12 in ATP Masters 1000 finals

Raonic 2016 FastFacts
W: Brisbane (d. Federer); SF: Australian Open (l. to Murray)
YTD W-L: 14-1 (14-1 on hard)
YTD Titles: 1 / Career Titles: 8
Date of Birth: December 27, 1990
Emirates ATP Ranking: 14
Indian Wells W-L (Best Result): 16-5 (2016 Finalist)
• 2016 Indian Wells: The 25-year-old Canadian is into first final and has won 10 of 11 sets, dropping only set in SF
vs. [15] Goffin 63 36 63. Saved 2 set points in 2nd set en route to 64 76(7) win over [6] Berdych in 4R and followed
with 75 63 victory over [13] Monfils on Thursday night. Last year (d. No. 3 Nadal in QF, l. to Federer in SF)
• Infosys ATP Scores & Stats: No. 2 in tournament with 41 aces (behind Isner 60) and No. 3 with 92% of service
games won (45 of 49), saving 5 of 9 break pts. Has 8.2 aces avg. compared to 15.5 on season. Has won 33% of
return games (16 of 48) and coming into IW had 15% career avg. (17% this year)
• Tournament Note: Saved 3 MPs to beat No. 3 Nadal 46 76(10) 75 en route to 2015 SF (l. to No. 2 Federer). His 16
match wins is most at an ATP Masters 1000 tournament
• Won 1st 9 matches of 2016 season, highlighted by 8th career ATP World Tour title at Brisbane (d. No. 3 Federer). Victory over Federer avenged loss to Swiss in 2015 Brisbane final
• Upset No. 4 Wawrinka in 5 sets en route to 2nd Grand Slam SF at Australian Open (l. to No. 2 Murray in 5 sets)
• Withdrew from Delray Beach, Acapulco and Davis Cup 1R due to adductor tear sustained in Australian Open SF
• Appearing in 17th career ATP World Tour final (8-8), 3rd ATP Masters 1000 final (’13 Montreal, l. to Nadal; ’14 Paris-Bercy, l. to Djokovic)
• Has a 20-42 career record vs. Top 10 opponents (3-1 this year) and 0-5 vs. No. 1s (3 vs. Djokovic, 2 vs. Nadal)
• Will improve from No. 14 in the Emirates ATP Rankings to No.12 by reaching the final (No. 10 if wins title)

OUTSIDE TOP 10 TO REACH FINAL: Raonic is the first player outside the Top 10 to reach the Indian Wells final since No. 11 Isner in 2012. He is trying to become the first player outside the Top 10 to win the title since No. 26 Ivan Ljubicic in 2010. Here are the players outside the Top 10 to reach the final since 2000 when the Indian Wells Tennis Garden was first introduced:
Year – Emirates ATP Ranking
2012 – No. 11 John Isner lost to Roger Federer
2010 – No. 26 Ivan Ljubicic defeated Andy Roddick
2008 – No. 98 Mardy Fish (u) lost to Novak Djokovic
2007 – No. 13 Novak Djokovic lost to Rafael Nadal
2006 – No. 14 James Blake lost to Roger Federer
2003 – No. 24 Gustavo Kuerten (u) lost to Lleyton Hewitt
2000 – No. 26 Alex Corretja (u) defeated Thomas Enqvist
Note: (u) Unseeded

YOUNG STARS ON ATP WORLD TOUR: Raonic leads a group of nine players born in the 1990s to win an ATP World Tour singles title. He’s trying to become the first player born in the 1990s to win an ATP Masters 1000 title.

Returning Milos Raonic's serve is one of the toughest tasks in tennis.

Avoiding Raonic's wrecking ball serve is now even more problematic.

Raonic is making the mind-body connection a painful proposition for opponents.

Rather that trying to blast the heat by returners, Raonic is taking more thoughtful approach on serve: Jamming bruising body serves to force short replies.

"I'm using a lot more of the body serve. I think that's a simple factor," Raonic told the media in Indian Wells. "You have most guys that were covering two serves against me. Now I think I have given them three serves to cover."

Working over the returner's body, expands the service box as Raonic showed in his 7-5, 6-3 Indian Wells quarterfinal victory over the rangy Gael Monfils on Thursday night.

"Plus I'm coming in on pretty much all three of those (serves)," Raonic said. "It gives me sort of six options to work with. I think my numbers are up in general. I think maybe it doesn't matter as much. I can get away with going for the sidelines against the guys in the early rounds."

The 12th-seeded Canadian has not dropped a set and has surrendered serve just twice reaching the BNP Paribas Open semifinals against David Goffin.

"But when it comes to, you know, these top guys that can guess, and if they get their racquet on it, they can always make it," Raonic said. "It's important to give them something else to think about."

Of course, thinking flees and self-preservation instinct kicks in when a 139 mph missile is about to erupt into your rib cage. Raonic aims for the right hip on right handers to tie them up.

Body-serving provides multiple benefits: Raonic can elicit a mid-court return or set up a high volley if attacking while discouraging returners from leaning on defending the wide serve.

"You get mostly short returns, especially if you can jam them on the forehand side," Raonic said. "It's hard for anybody to sort of hit off that right hip or—and if you get it in the right spot, most of the time they have to hit it with a slice so it's a short ball or ball you can be aggressive with.

"But also what it does is maybe the next time you're serving on that side makes them think should they stay there and not guess one side."

Varying his serving patterns to aid his attacking game is another adjustment in Raonic's ongoing evolution from a big server to a more complete player. He was fifth in the ATP ace race last season, cracking 743 aces in 47 matches. Raonic ripped 1,107 aces in 67 matches in 2014, second behind only Ivo Karlovic's 1,185 in 64 matches that season.

This season, Raonic is striving to be a more efficient server rather than ace master. He is second on the ATP in first-serve points won (82 percent), second in service games won (94 percent) and second in break points saved (76 percent).

The 2015 tournament semifinalist puts his serve to the test against David Goffin for a spot in the Indian Wells final. Goffin defeated Raonic in their lone prior meeting in the 2014 Basel quarterfinals.

Listed at 5-foot-11, the slender Belgian has straddled the baseline to take the ball earlier in defeating a pair of Grand Slam champions in succession, Stan Wawrinka and Marin Cilic, to reach his first career Masters semifinal.

"He's playing well. He's taking the ball early," Raonic said of Goffin. "He's trying to maybe not overpower but take away time from his opponents. I watched a little bit of his match today. I watched quite a bit of his match against Stan.

"You see that he's trying to take time away and maybe getting guys to panic and not set up their swings. But I think when it comes to that kind of stuff I'm pretty good at getting things to my term. If he wants to stay on the baseline I'm going to have to try to push him back."

Canadian regroups after Indian Wells final loss
Returning from injury to make the final of an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event would be a considerable feat for any player, and Milos Raonic is looking at the positives after dropping a 6-2, 6-0 decision to Novak Djokovic at the BNP Paribas Open on Sunday.
“There are a lot of positives to take away. Right now it's very disappointing, but at the end of the day, until two weeks ago I didn't do any side-to-side movement and I didn't play any points,” he said. “To be here playing in the final of one of the most important tournaments in our year is great progress. I look to sort of keep that going forward, try to be healthy and try to get better every day.
“I need to work harder,” the Canadian said. “I need to execute better. I think I'm on the right track. It’s about putting things together and being effective. I think I have it within me, but obviously I need to reach a lot deeper to find that execution.”
Despite being broken five times, Raonic did not do badly on first-serve points, winning 23 of 30 against the No. 1 player in the Emirates ATP Rankings. However, he only landed 50 per cent of first serves and managed to win just 10 per cent of second-serve points (3/30).
“You know what Novak can bring, and you know that he's the best returner probably of all time,” Raonic noted. “Not only is he good when the ball is close to him, he's even very good when it's far away from him, making you play and neutralizing the point very well in that situation.”
The big server look to be hampered by a lower-body injury and took a medical time-out after the first set to receive treatment. He is planning to undergo tests before making a decision on his participation at the Miami Open.
“[It felt] similar, but not as bad,” said Raonic, who sustained an adductor injury at the Australian Open. “I don't think I let it get as bad. I have to do the right investigation. Just sort of see what it is and then I can judge it from there.”

The Canadian is now ranked No. 12 in the Emirates ATP Rankings
Milos Raonic has enjoyed one of the best starts to 2016 on the ATP World Tour.
The 6'5” Canadian is 14-2 on the year. He won a title in Brisbane (d. Federer) and reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open (l. to Murray). Last week, at the year's first ATP World Tour Masters 1000, the BNP Paribas Open, Raonic produced another impressive result by making the final (l. Djokovic).
The 25 year old looks to keep improving this week at the Miami Open presented by Itau.
“I hope I can continue playing like I have in the last few tournaments this year,” Raonic said Tuesday in Miami. “I think my level has improved and I hope I keep that progress going forward.”
Raonic, who bumped up two spots in the Emirates ATP Rankings to No. 12, has yet to achieve a breakout result in Miami. His best showing came in 2014 when he reached the quarter-finals (l. to Nadal). Last year, American John Isner defeated Raonic in the fourth round 6-7(3), 7-6(6), 7-6(5).
Raonic's health will be a key to better results in Miami. A torn adductor affected him against Andy Murray in Australia, and Raonic sat out the entire month of February to rest. He also sought medical treatment after the first set against Djokovic on Sunday. When Raonic was asked on Sunday if it felt like the adductor again, he said, “Feels similar, but not as bad. I don't think I let it get as bad.”
But he later said he didn't think any injury affected his effort. “I thought he played much better than I did,” Raonic said of Djokovic. “I struggled again, just like last time, to start the match well, and then he's the best player in the world at this moment and a good step ahead of everybody.”
A new addition to Raonic's team has helped his strong start. In January, Raonic brought former World No. 1 Carlos Moya to his team.
“He's given me a lot of understanding about my tennis,” Raonic said. “He's also given me a lot of insight on how to go about the process, how to improve, how to get better, what to improve and how to get closer to achieving the goals that I hope to achieve.”
Raonic will receive a first-round bye in Miami. In the second round, he'll play either #NextGen star Hyeon Chung of South Korea or American Denis Kudla.