It was two wins in two matches for Milos Raonic on Friday at the China Open in Beijing as he booked his spot in the semi-finals.
After rain washed him off the schedule on Thursday, the Canadian came out Friday morning to defeat Malek Jaziri 6-3, 6-4 in just 58 minutes. He then returned to the court later for a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Pablo Carreno Busta in the quarter-finals.
Carreno Busta was also playing his second match of the day, having earlier completed a 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 comeback victory over Richard Gasquet.
Raonic goes on to face Grigor Dimitrov for a place in the final, after the Bulgarian ousted second seed Rafael Nadal. Raonic has a 1-2 FedEx ATP Head2Head record against Dimitrov, with his lone win coming five years ago in Stockholm. This will be their first meeting since 2014.
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Raonic is bidding to become the fourth player to qualify for the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, joining Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka. The right-hander is currently fourth in the Emirates ATP Race To London.
This week, the 25-year-old Raonic is looking to get his season back on track after disappointing losses in the second round at the US Open (l. to Harrison) and St. Petersburg Open (l. to Youzhny). The first eight months saw Raonic compile some of the best results of his career, including reaching his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon (l. to Murray). The Toronto native is bidding to reach his fifth tour-level final of the season and add to the Brisbane title that he lifted in January with victory over Roger Federer.
Bryans Into Semis
Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan are through to the semi-finals of the China Open after receiving a walkover on Friday. French pair Richard Gasquet and Lucas Pouille were forced to withdraw from their quarter-final clash, with Pouille citing a lower back injury.
The Bryans will face Pablo Carreno Busta and Rafael Nadal as they look to reach the Beijing final for the fourth time. The 38-year-old twins are three-time champions here, lifting the trophy in 2009-10 and 2012.