Two years after coming up short against Roger Federer in the Wimbledon semifinals, Canada’s Milos Raonic will get another chance Friday.
And this time, he says he feels prepared to make the most of it.
“I’m a lot more aware of what I need to do out there,” Raonic told TSN’s Mark Masters. “There will be a lot of different challenges, but I feel I have the whole arsenal of tools within myself to get the most out of myself and take advantage of this opportunity.”
Raonic listed presence and demeanour as the biggest improvements to his game and said he’s playing at a higher level than ever.
That confidence was on display in the fourth round of the tournament, when Raonic overcame an 0-2 deficit in sets to defeat David Goffin. He carried that momentum into Wednesday’s quarter-finals, committing just 16 unforced errors on his way to beating Sam Querrey 6-4, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4.
Federer rallied from an 0-2 deficit himself in the quarter-finals, downing Marin Cilic 6-7, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6, 6-3. He beat Raonic in straight sets in the 2014 Wimbledon semifinals and is 9-2 versus Raonic in his career, though Raonic defeated Federer in the final of the Brisbane Invitational earlier this year.
Friday’s match will begin at 8 a.m. eastern and you can catch it in Canada on TSN.
Raonic Wimbledon Odds versus Federer
Of all the top sportsbooks we recommend for Canadians, Pinnacle (www.Pinnacle.com) was offering the best Raonic betting odds as of Thursday morning.
Pinnacle listed Raonic at +155 odds (you could win $155 for every $100 risked).
The Over/Under on the number of sets in the match was 44 (-110 odds) at Pinnacle, and Raonic was even money on a +2.5 handicap in games. (For more on these alternative tennis betting lines, see our article on the different ways to bet tennis.)
Wimbledon Betting Pick: Raonic versus Federer
We agree with Raonic: he looks much more prepared for a clash with Federer on the centre court of Wimbledon.
There seems to be good value on Raonic at +155 odds, but we think the Over 44 might be a better play in this match.
After seeing both Raonic and Federer overcome 0-2 deficits in the past week, we don’t see either player going down very easily.
Each set should be hotly contested and if we can get a couple tiebreakers, we may not even need the match to go five sets in order to cash the Over. For example, a match of 6-4, 6-7, 7-6, 6-3 would add up to 45 games and win the Over bet.
We’ll cheer for a competitive game – and it’d be a nice bonus if our Canadian boy can advance.