Thornhill tennis star returns for Rogers Cup
Raonic ‘eager to play in hometown’

YorkRegion.com
Aug. 1, 2014
David Li

Beginning on Saturday, the world’s top men’s tennis players will be competing in the Rogers Cup at nearby York University – and one of them will be Thornhill’s Milos Raonic.

Coming off an impressive semi-final appearance at Wimbledon in early July, Raonic will be entering the Rogers Cup as the tournament’s seventh seeded player and receive a bye in the first round.

Given his success, many tennis enthusiasts will be eager to see their local tennis hero up close and in person, currently competing at the Citi Open in Washington, D.C.

One person who understands the excitement surrounding Raonic’s return is Casey Curtis, who coached the Thornhill tennis ace from age 8 to 17.

“He came by our club last week and got a big standing ovation as he walked in,” said Curtis, a high performance coach, who trains out of the Richmond Hill Lawn and Tennis Club.

The highly respected tennis coach says his current students are inspired by the success of Raonic, who has won five career ATP titles; and is currently the seventh ranked player in the world.

“Just understanding that Milos came from this area and I’m the guy that worked with him, gives them the belief that if they work really work, they have a shot to do just as well,” he added.

At the 2013 Rogers Cup, when the men played in Montreal, Raonic finished runner-up to 14-time grand slam champion, Rafael Nadal of Spain.

With the Rogers Cup kicking off in a matter of days this year in Toronto, with the women playing in Montreal, Curtis says his young players are all excited about having the opportunity to support their tennis hero in person.

“They’re going to watch (Milos) and they’re definitely all looking forward to it,” he said.

For his part, Raonic is eager to make his return and compete in front of the hometown crowd.

“I’m really looking forward to coming back to Toronto and playing Rogers Cup in my hometown,” Raonic said. “There are only a few opportunities in a year that I get to play at home in front of Canadian fans and I’m eager to do well again this year.

“I always feel comfortable here, as this is where I grew up,” he added. “And this is one of the best places in the world to play.”

Other Thornhill players joining Raonic this year will be Peter Polansky, who was awarded a wild card into the main draw of the tournament, and Pavel Krainik, who was awarded a wild card into the qualifying draw.

Among the notable superstars competing at the Master 1000 level event at York University will be world No. 1 player Novak Djokovic and No. 3 competitor Roger Federer. In all, eight out of the world’s top 10 players will be competing at the Rogers Cup, which runs from Aug. 2 to 10.

For more info, visit rogerscup.com