Australian Open preview and odds: Milos Raonic vs Gael Monfils
Published on: 26/01/2016
Australian Open preview and odds: Milos Raonic vs Gael Monfils
January 27, 2016 19:30pm - Rod Laver Arena
Australian Open - Quarter-finals
Canadian Milos Raonic took five sets to overcome fourth-ranked Stan Wawrinka in the last round of the Australian Open. His reward? A quarter-final clash against Gael Monfils - a player that he has yet to beat in his career.
Raonic reaches second-straight Aussie Open quarter-final
Milos Raonic let a two-set lead slip in his fourth round match against Stan Wawrinka, but bounced back in the fifth to book a place in the Aussie quarters for the second year running. It was a great win against a player who many had tipped would at least make the semi-finals this year.
The young Canadian served well throughout and won an impressive 79% of his first service points, giving him a crucial edge over his opponent. The victory extended the 25-year-olds unbeaten run in 2016 to eight matches, the highlight of which was his win over Roger Federer in the final of the warm-up tournament in Brisbane.
Key stats from Raonic`s fourth round match:
- First serve success: 68%
- Points won on first serve: 79%
- Points won on second serve: 48%
- Net points won: 65%
- Unforced errors: 53
- Returns won: 37%
- Break points won: 5 out of 15
Smooth ride for Monfils
Gael Monfils has had a fairly easy passage to the quarter-final stage by Grand Slam standards. He has yet to face a seeded opponent and has only dropped one set so far. His toughest challenge came in the last round when he was taken to four sets by Andrey Kuznetsov.
The Frenchman has been serving well throughout the tournament and has dominated at the net. He will go into this game knowing that he has the measure of Raonic, having beaten him in both of their previous encounters.
The 29-year-old has only ever made it to one Grand Slam semi-final, at the French Open back in 2008.
Key stats from Monfils` fourth round match:
- First serve success: 62%
- Points won on first serve: 81%
- Points won on second serve: 63%
- Net points won: 94%
- Unforced errors: 32
- Returns won: 37%
- Break points won: 3 out of 10
Betting odds and tips
This should be a very close game, but the French player is serving well and may cause Raonic some issues with his dynamic net play.
Gael Monfils to win by 3 sets to 1 can be backed at a generous 7/1 with Bet365
By Neil Morris
Published on: 26/01/2016
Any odds displayed within this preview were correct at the time of publishing (26/01/2016 16:49:14) but are subject to change.
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