Milos Raonic blasts past Gael Monfils in London

Considering that he’s less than two weeks removed from having to withdraw from a tournament due to a leg injury, it’s impressive that Milos Raonic is in the field at the ATP World Tour Finals.

Winning his opening round-robin match on the first day of the event against Gael Monfils only adds to the achievement.

Raonic defeated Monfils 6-3, 6-4 in the last match of the day at the 02 Arena in London. In the first set, Raonic broke the Frenchman’s serve in the second game and held his own throughout to win it in 34 minutes. Monfils fought off multiple break points in the second before Raonic capitalized for a 4-3 lead. The Canadian’s serve, always a threat indoors, often left Monfils flustered as he won 25 of 29 first serve points.

Next up for Raonic will be Novak Djokovic, who battled past Dominic Thiem in three sets in the first singles match of the tournament. The Ivan Lendl group appears to have been tailor-made for Djokovic as he’s never lost to anyone in it, including a 7-0 head-to-head record against Raonic.

However, Djokovic’s form—or lack thereof—has been in question for a few months now. Raonic’s serve and fitness will be crucial in determining the outcome. If his match against Monfils is any indication, though, he has a fighter’s chance against the world No. 2.