Raonic crashes out to 116th-ranked qualifier

Friday, 17 October 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters: Top seed Milos Raonic suffered a setback in his hopes of qualifying for the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals after he was beaten 6-3 4-6 6-3 by 116th-ranked journeyman Ricardas Berankis in the second round of the Kremlin Cup on Thursday.

Berankis watched 15 aces from Raonic whistle past him but the Lithuanian qualifier broke the Canadian’s powerful serve four times to seal his first ever victory over a top 10 player. “I did not approach the match in the sort of form as I would have liked to. I have been feeling sick for the last 10 days with a cold and have been lying in bed. I was only able to prepare over the last two days,” Raonic told reporters. “I thought that Berankis would play a strong game. We have known each other since we were kids and he is a very good tennis player.” Raonic currently stands eighth in the “Race to London” for the end-of-season ATP World Tour Finals which will feature the top eight players. Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Australian Open winner Stanislas Wawrinka have already qualified, while several players are still in contention to grab the four remaining places. “I still haven’t lost all my chances (to qualify for London). Thankfully I can’t say that today’s loss has broken my heart,” added Raonic.