Men’s semis, Wimbledon

1) Raonic defeats Federer.  This was a fabulous match!  Federer started a bit slowly but played great tennis after the first set.  Raonic got many free points from his serve as expected, but unexpectedly, showed many newly developed skills that got him through.  Since his loss to Federer in 2014 at Wimbledon, Raonic has dramatically improved in the following areas:

A) Return of serve.  Milos blistered several returns for free points, and consistently got the ball in play.

B) Net play.  Raonic used his reach and great hands to play many terrific volleys.

C) Court coverage.  It was hard to believe that I was watching Milos Raonic, a man who lumbered around the court two years ago.  In this match Raonic kept many points alive when pressed into difficult positions.

D) Topspin backhand.  In the past Raonic almost always sliced his backhand, but in this match he hit some intimidating backhand drives and looked completely comfortable playing the topspin backhand.

E) Inside-in forehand.  Raonic used to hit his forehand inside out almost every time, but in this match he hit several inside in cannon shots, even from difficult positions on the court.

Overall, a truly great performance from Milos.  If he keeps playing this way he will barge his way into the top 4.  There’s also a lesson from his performance for the very talented Nick Kyrgios, and here it is:

Great tennis that thrills the fans does not come from hitting fancy tweeners , making difficult but ill-timed drop shots, or engaging in emotional pyrotechnics.  Rather, it comes from playing great tennis at critical moments in matches, which Raonic did today.  Nick should try focusing his prodigious talents in a similar way, so he and Milos can meet in future slam finals.

2) Murray defeats Berdych in straight sets.  Thomas Berdych is a one-trick pony, with the trick being power hitting.  It’s a pretty darn good trick, as it allows Berdych to ride roughshod over almost every pro in the game.  It’s not enough to overcome the more complete play of the top 4, however, and Murray reminded him of that today.  This match was not really surprising or eventful.

In the final, expect Murray to prevail.  Although Raonic is a very cerebral player, he has no prior experience in slam finals, and there won’t be more than a few people in the stadium pulling for him.  Let’s hope he plays the way he did today, because he could make it interesting.  Because Milos got so close to beating Murray on grass at the Aegon championships just a few weeks ago, this is almost a pick-em match, but I give Murray the edge.