The HP Pavillion is the home to the NHL's San Jose Sharks and though the baseline replaces the blue line when tennis comes to town, Denis Istomin looked like a beleaguered goalie lunging at a series of slap shots as Milos Raonic's serve roared past.
Blasting massive serves with the force of a man intent on bruising the ball with each swing, Raonic lost just four points on serve to successfully defend his San Jose title with an explosive 7-6 (3), 6-2 victory.
The son of engineers, Raonic admits he was a bit of a math geek growing up. He's grown into an impressive number cruncher. The 21-year-old Raonic is 8-0 lifetime in San Jose without surrendering a set. Raonic, who opened the year edging Janko Tipsarevic in a tight Chennai final, raised his 2012 record to 11-1 in becoming the ATP's first two-time titlist this season.
There are few sights in tennis as foreboding as the 6'5" Canadian reaching his right arm up to unleash his imposing serve. When a body serve runs the risk of inflicting blunt force trauma on an opponent, you know you're looking at a lethal tennis weapon. Sometimes Raonic served so big, it seemed the only true gauge was the sound of the ball bursting off the strings as Istomin seemed to struggle to see it. You can hardly blame him for the rapid blinks he made between first and second serves as if trying to clear his vision. Raonic ripped a few 150 MPH serves that transformed the ball into a blur as it buzzed through the service box. He hit seven aces, won 17 of 18 points played on his second serve and held at love in seven of his 10 service games.
Still, Istomin, bidding to become the first man from Uzbekistan to win an ATP title, hung tough in digging out of 15-30 deficits in the third and eleventh games to stay on serve. The set escalated into the inevitable tie break and Istomin blinked first missing a backhand to hand Raonic a mini-break on the first point. Raonic turned the crack into a chasm, stretching the lead to 6-1 in a matter of moments before closing the set.
The cumulative effect of facing that wrecking ball serve exerts even more pressure on the opponent to hold. Raonic stabbed a forehand return back near the baseline to extend a point and an anxious Istomin sailed a backhand beyond the baseline to drop serve and fall into a 1-3 hole.
When Raonic breaks serve, he shatters hope. Raonic trains in Spain with Galo Blanco, the man who swept Sampras in 2001 French Open, and his clay-court training is evident in the small preparation steps he takes to set up for his forehand as well as his willingness to explore angles with that shot. Raonic closed in 79 minutes hugging his father and coach and humoring the Bay Era crowd that has embraced the man who was ranked No. 156 in January of 2011.
"If the real estate wasn't so expensive here, maybe I'd buy a place," Raonic joked during the trophy presentation. He isn't house-hunting but looks right at home as tournament champion.
—Richard Pagliaro