Australian Open tennis: Milos Raonic aiming to put horror year behind him

LIKE most things in Milos Raonic’s world, the Canadian’s early arrival in Melbourne for next month’s Australian Open is no accident.

Milos Raonic (right) with Australian cricket captain Steve Smith at Melbourne Park on Thursday.

LIKE most things in Milos Raonic’s world, the Canadian’s early arrival in Melbourne for next month’s Australian Open is no accident.

But, in this case, his presence in Australia 25 days before the first ball is struck in main draw anger owes something to circumstance.

Forced to prematurely end a wretched 2017 season in October, the former world No 3 will spend Christmas here with an ambition of steadily rebuilding form and fitness.

Sidelined with wrist and calf issues, Raonic is hopeful he can transform the negatives of last season into a 2018 bounty.

“Last year, the season finished late for me so time was limited and everything ended up being a rush,” he said.

“This year, I’ve had time to sort of take off and recover and also get ready.

Milos Raonic at Melbourne Park on Thursday.

“Obviously I struggled towards the end of the season.

“Now I’ve had time to clear that up and focus on my tennis and the upcoming events.”

A perennial grand threat on grass and hardcourt, Raonic’s thunderous serve-forehand combination has carried twice to the quarters at Melbourne Park and once into the last four.

Scheduled to play Brisbane as his summer pipe-opener, Raonic keen to for an early test.

“I’ve always played well down here in Australia so it’s great for me to be back,” he said.

“Ended the year not in the best shape or in the way I would have liked to so it’s nice to be here early and have a chance to turn around my fortunes, hopefully.”

Raonic finished the year at No 24, labelling 2017 as “difficult and frustrating”, lamenting he could not have “focused on tennis more rather than chasing help all the time.”

The towering right-hander will continue to work with David Piles, former coach to David Ferrer, Mark Knowles and long-term adviser Riccardo Piatti.

Milos Raonic (right) with Australian cricket captain Steve Smith at Melbourne Park on Thursday.

He will return to Pat Rafter Arena armed with the memories of downing current world No 1 Rafael Nadal in a gripping three-setter there last season.

Apart from the two finals he contested last season, it was the highlight of an otherwise sapping season.

Raonic will tackle Nadal, Grigor Dimitrov, Nick Kyrgios and Andy Murray, among others, in Brisbane.