Milos Raonic beats Roger Federer in five sets to reach Wimbledon 2016 final
Milos Raonic won a thrilling five-set contest to reach his first Grand Slam final and end Roger Federer’s hopes of an eighth Wimbledon title for another year.
The big-serving sixth seed won 6-3 6-7 4-6 7-5 6-3 on Centre Court to become the first Canadian man to reach a Grand Slam final.
He will face either Andy Murray or Tomas Berdych on Sunday.
It has been four years since Federer’s last Grand Slam title, coming on Centre Court in 2012, and doubts remain about whether he can add an 18th crown after he fell short in the absence of the eliminated Novak Djokovic.
The 34-year-old Federer seemed to be showing a few lingering signs of fatigue from his marathon five-set win over Marin Cilic in the quarter-finals and a weary double fault handed over a first break to Raonic.
After opening a two-game cushion at 3-1, Raonic repelled a testing assault from Federer with the aid of his booming serve, and a fizzing forehand winner would earn a one-set lead.
There were few signs of frailty in the second set until Raonic unravelled at 5-4 down, gifting three break points with a double fault, but the 25-year-old showed inner steel while scrapping back to hold.
Another rash double fault from Raonic would not go unpunished in the tie-break as the predatory Federer fashioned a 6-3 lead and soon levelled the match.
Into the third set, Federer would coax a first break out of the Canadian, who surrendered his serve with a wild return, and the former champion was far more serene while sealing the set.
But Raonic refused to let Federer stroll into another showpiece and brought up set point at 6-5, taking the third break point with a backhand winner to force a fifth set that would test his opponent’s ageing limbs.
Treatment from the trainer failed to revive Federer and he fell to the turf while desperately trying to withstand Raonic, who broke again with a classy cross-court winner before ending a marathon victory.
