Milos Raonic becomes top-ranked Canadian men’s singles player ever

In Toronto, you know you’ve arrived when Matt Galloway interviews your mom, and that’s exactly what happened to Milos Raonic this morning. Having taken the tennis world by storm this year—including pushing top-seeded Andy Roddick to the max in the final of ATP Memphis on Sunday, before narrowly losing—Raonic landed his mother a quick spot on CBC’s Metro Morning today. Mama Raonic spoke of the drive, dedication and ethos behind her son’s success, while Galloway celebrated Raonic as the “face of tennis since the Australian Open,” reiterating the bold proclamation in the pages of the San Francisco Chronicle yesterday.

Raonic’s rise through the professional tennis circuit’s ranks over the past two months has been nothing short of spectacular. Before falling 7-6, 6-7, 7-5 to Roddick this weekend, Raonic blasted his way to the round of 16 at the Australian Open, put forward a solid showing at the South Africa Open in Johannesburg and won his first ATP title at the SAP Open in San Jose. The Thornhill native started the year at 150^th in the world, but today he is the number 37–ranked player, the highest-ever ranking for a Canadian men’s singles player. Montreal-born Greg Rusedski was, at one point, the number four–ranked player in the world, but by then he had switched his tennis allegiance from Canada to Great Britain (traitor!). In other words, he counts neither technically nor in our heart of hearts—that latter space, of course, is reserved for Milos and his mom.

• Canada star on world stage [Montreal Gazette]
• Made in the USA? Not Milos Raonic [San Francisco Chronicle]