Wednesday 16 November 2016 07:32, UK
Novak Djokovic said beating Milos Raonic in straight sets was a confidence-booster for the rest of the ATP World Tour Finals.
Djokovic qualified for Saturday's semi-finals with a closely fought 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (7-5) victory in which Raonic hit 14 aces and 42 winners.
Djokovic, by comparison, managed just two aces and 11 winners, but he prevailed thanks largely to his willingness to engage in long rallies and ability to lure Raonic into unforced errors.
Asked in his post-match press conference if the match would give him extra belief, Djokovic said: "It certainly can.
"He won a lot of points like that against me today - big serve and then forehand - but I knew that I'm going to have a couple of opportunities when his serve percentage drops, which happened early in the second set.
"I thought it was a good performance. I should have maybe been a bit more aggressive in certain points and maybe I was too static in certain points.
"In general, this definitely can serve as a great wind in the back for the next match and matches to come."
Raonic completed only 58 per cent of his first serves and also struggled on his second, winning just 36 per cent of points.
He now needs to beat Dominic Thiem in his final round-robin match, on Thursday, to guarantee his place in Saturday's semi-finals.
Raonic said: "Emotionally, I'm a little bit upset, but it passes over quickly. It's not the kind of format where it stays with you. I have a chance in two days, 36 hours, 48 hours to come back and do better than I did today.
"I think I did a lot of things well that I hope I can continue into the next match. I hope I can serve a little bit better in the next one."
Watch every day of the ATP World Tour Finals, from November 13-20, live on Sky Sports. Full schedule here.
