Milos Raonic started his first-round match at the 2024 Australian Open well, but eventually, he was forced to retire against Alex de Minaur.
The two met in one of the most anticipated first-round matches of this year's first Grand Slam. De Minaur has been in great form, and he wanted to show it against the tall Canadian.
But surprisingly, it was Raonic who had the only break points in the first set. Ultimately, he couldn't use any of his chances, and when leading 5-4, he requested a medical time out, which had to be carried off the court.
The Canadian then returned to the court, and he did well, as the first set was decided in a tie-break. Raonic was the better player in the tie-break, saving a break point to win it 8-6.
However, in the second set, it became apparent that Raonic started struggling with his serve, as even his opponent was able to hit more aces than he did, even though the Canadian hit four times more aces than his opponent in the first set.
De Minaur took advantage of that and broke Raonic's serve in the second set, and thanks to hold his serve comfortably, he won the second set 6-3.
The home crowd favourite started also the second set well, breaking his opponent's serve and leading 2-0, and that was when Raonic made a decision to retire, as he was not able to compete anymore due to physical pain.
After the match, the Australian also had nice words for his opponent, as Raonic is one of the most recognizable players on the ATP Tour, but injuries have been troubling him just too much recently.
"I hope Milos has a speedy recovery. Not great to see him like his. He deserves to be healthy and playing incredible tennis like he’s done for so many years. Hopefully he’s back in no time. I was just chasing his serve for the better part of that match."
Alex de Minaur vs Milos Raonic Match Stats:
| Alex de Minaur | Milos Raonic | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Aces | 12 |
| 1 | Double Faults | 1 |
| 51% | First Serve % | 58% |
| 85% (35/41) | Points Won After First Serve % | 75% (30/40) |
| 62% (24/39) | Points Won After Second Serve % | 62% (18/29) |
| 66% (2/3) | Break Point Conversion | 0% (0/4) |
| 26 | Winners | 31 |
| 12 | Unforced Errors | 32 |
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