Ricardas Berankis has Milos Raonic's number on indoor hard courts. The 26-year-old Lithuanian beat Raonic again on Tuesday at the Swiss Indoors Basel, knocking the second seed out of the indoor ATP World Tour 500 tournament 3-6, 6-3, 6-3.
Berankis, No. 91 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, broke Raonic once in the second set and twice in the third set, including when Raonic was serving to stay in the match. Berankis held for 5-3 the prior game with a rocket forehand winner down the line, which he celebrated with a “Come on!” and a shake of the fist.
The qualifier brought the same energy to Raonic's service game. Berankis went up 30/40 and clinched the second Top 10 win of his career when Raonic netted a forehand. Berankis' only prior Top 10 win also came against Raonic, a three-set win indoors in Moscow in 2014. Berankis will face Argentine Federico Delbonis in the second round.
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Gilles Muller also came back to upset a seeded player in Basel. The 33 year old was a set and 3-1 down but prevailed against sixth seed Grigor Dimitrov 6-7(9), 6-4, 6-4 in two hours and 22 minutes. Dimitrov nearly gained the advantage in the third set. Muller was serving at 3-3, 0/40 but won five consecutive points to get to 4-3. Four games later, Dimitrov was broken when he mishit a forehand wide.
Muller moves into the second round in Basel for the first time, having suffered first-round losses in 2011 and 2014. He'll next meet German Florian Mayer, who defeated Frenchman Benoit Paire 6-1, 6-7(2), 6-4 after one hour and 38 minutes. Mayer clinched the win on his fourth match point after failing to capitlise on his first opportunity at 5-3 in the second set.
Mayer, a nominee for Comeback Player of the Year in the 2016 ATP World Tour Awards Presented By Moët & Chandon, beat Muller in their one FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting in 2012 at Montpellier.