Wawrinka Battles To Win; Raonic Beats Hanescu For QF Spot

© AFP/Getty ImagesStanislas Wawrinka has a 10-2 record in Chennai.

Defending champion and 2010 runner-up Stanislas Wawrinka survived a gruelling start to his 2012 ATP World Tour season on Wednesday when the third-seeded Swiss beat French lucky loser Edouard Roger-Vasselin 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 in two hours and 25 minutes at the Aircel Chennai Open. "It's never easy to play your first match, first tournament, first week of the year," said Wawrinka. "You always have a lot of questions about your game, so I put some pressue on myself."

In a match featuring nine breaks of serve, World No. 17 Wawrinka hit 10 aces and converted five of 11 break point chances to improve to 10-2 at the ATP World Tour 250 hard-court tournament. "I won the match, and that is the most important thing," stated Wawrinka. "I'm really happy with my game, because in the end, I found all the solutions. I was playing better and better throughout the match."

He will next play Go Soeda in the quarter-finals, after the Japanese qualifier beat fifth seed Ivan Dodig 7-6(6), 6-3 in one hour and 48 minutes.

Fourth seed Milos Raonic, the 2011 ATP Newcomer of the Year, started his year by hitting nine aces past Victor Hanescu for a 6-1, 6-4 win. The Canadian dropped 15 points on serve and saved all four break points he faced. "Today was very good, especially considering it was my first match of the year," Raonic told ATPWorldTour.com. "A lot of things that I worked on in the off-season came together so quickly, which is amazing. I'm going to try to work on a few things for the next match to get better, and hopefully as the tournament progresses, so does my tennis."

Raonic, who lost in the final round of qualifying at the event last year, finds that the tournament is a great way to transition into the new season. "It's a good week. The people here are friendly, you have the courts you need, and the heat is probably a little tougher here than in Australia," believes Raonic. "I don't think I did my best here last year, but it gave me a good kick to do well in Australia."  

The 21 year old will next face Israeli Dudi Sela in the quarter-finals. Sela beat France's Benoit Paire 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 in just over two hours.

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