Canadians Denis Shapovalov, Milos Raonic book spots in St. Petersburg quarterfinals

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia — Canadians Denis Shapovalov and Milos Raonic both are heading to the quarterfinals of the St. Petersburg Open.

The second-seeded Shapovalov, from Richmond Hill, Ont., beat qualifier Ilya Ivashka of Belarus 6-1, 6-4 in a second-round match at the ATP Tour 500 hard-court event on Thursday.

The sixth-seeded Raonic, from Thornhill, Ont., beat Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan 6-3, 6-2.

Shapovalov, the world No. 12, saved all five break points he faced and won 89 per cent of points when he got his first serve in.

“I am in good shape now and I played really well today,” Shapovalov said.

The Canadian will face No. 5 seed Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland in the quarterfinals on Friday. Their lifetime series is tied at 1-1.

“Wawrinka is a very tough opponent,” Shapovalov said. “I think he is in very good shape now. He played two difficult matches in this tournament. I think I’ve met him twice already. It is especially difficult to play against him when he feels confident. I think tomorrow will be a difficult match, but I think that I am also in good shape, and I also played very well in two matches here.”

Raonic, ranked 21st in the world, also was perfect facing his opponent’s break points, saving all four.

Raonic will face No. 4 seed Karen Khachanov of Russia in the quarterfinals.

Shapovalov is the highest seed left after top-seeded Daniil Medvedev of Russia lost 2-6, 7-5, 6-4 to American Reilly Opelka in the second round.

No. 7 seed Borna Coric of Crotia faces Opelka, while No. 3 seed Andrey Rublev of Russia meets Great Britain’s Cameron Norrie in the other quarterfinals.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 15, 2020.

The Canadian Press