How can Raonic get past this?

[Kieran]

We all saw it and it's appalling. It doesn't reside alone on Tennis Cheat Mountain, but it's even more shocking because he stood there watching del Potro and umpire argue this and he said nothing.

Nada.

Rien.

He just shamefully kept his head down, even when the ump admitted that he'd made a mistake (which he couldn't change, according to the rules). No, Raonic, stood his dismal ground and took the point, the game and the match. It's embarrassing.

So, how can he rehabilitate himself with fans? What punishment would be suitable for you as a fan to forgive him?

Vote above!

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

People forget. I actually think he should forget it too and move on. Everyone saw what happened, so did he and the consensus is the umpire missed it and he should have called it on himself. He should have...but could he have called on himself that the ball was dead or alive too? Obviously not. So many times players see a line call that is in their favor and do not open their mouths. Actually "Are you going to take that point" was a question I heard a million times during matches between JMac and Connors, after questionable calls. They always took the point, knowing full well it might not be the correct one.
The kid is actually a very nice and smart person. He made a mistake. Got to move on.

 

[Kieran]

Absolutely, Murat. I remember Brad Gilbert said that the first time he played McEnroe, he had match point, Mac ballooned the ball a foot long, and then raged at the ump that the ball was in - and the point was replayed, with the obvious outcome. After the match, Mac smirked at him, as if to say, you shouldn't have put up with that crap!

 

[Moxie]

People don't forget, Murat. These are exactly the kinds of things that people remember, and they taint a player's reputation. (The thing has gone viral, and has inspired any number of lists of going over similar incidents of blatant cheating. There aren't that many.) Yes, the umpire should have seen it and called it, (or what about all the rest of those lazy lines people?) but there is also the feeling in tennis that you call these things on yourself. That may be old-world gentility in a big money game, but that's what people still think. And how Raonic reacted, and explained it later, shows the man. He said it was a big point, and anyone else would have done the same. I think he could have won the match, anyway, or at least have lost it with dignity. The best he can hope for now is to always behave in a sportsmanlike way, and hope that people put it down to an early mistake. But it will haunt him.

 

[Kieran]

I think in fairness to the umpire, he made a good point. He said he can't watch to see when the ball goes out of play and watch the player at the net at the same time. It seldom occurs but this was one where the player should have raised their racket and called it against themselves...

 

[Front242]

Only thing for it is this.

 

[ashwin#1]

LOL..great thread & poll options !!

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

People don't forget, Murat. These are exactly the kinds of things that people remember, and they taint a player's reputation. (The thing has gone viral, and has inspired any number of lists of going over similar incidents of blatant cheating. There aren't that many.) Yes, the umpire should have seen it and called it, (or what about all the rest of those lazy lines people?) but there is also the feeling in tennis that you call these things on yourself. That may be old-world gentility in a big money game, but that's what people still think. And how Raonic reacted, and explained it later, shows the man. He said it was a big point, and anyone else would have done the same. I think he could have won the match, anyway, or at least have lost it with dignity. The best he can hope for now is to always behave in a sportsmanlike way, and hope that people put it down to an early mistake. But it will haunt him.

Point is , it has happened, it will happen again. I remember people in juniors used to wipe out a mark , and THEN call it out...now , they just show the wrong mark to the umpire, like Soderling. When I say people forget, I just mean it loses it's importance in time. When you think about guys like Jmac, or Connors, you don't associate them with cheating now, do you? Yet read their books and you see how many time they have "justified" keeping unearned points.
Of course he could have handled it better, but this is one incidence. Got to move on.

 

[Kieran]

Actually, I do associate Connors and McEnroe with cheating. They smirk about it now, loving their old rogues status, but yeah, I think of cheating when I think of them, as much as I think of their great tennis.

And by the way, Raonic most likely won't be remembered for anything...

 

[JesuslookslikeBorg]

raonic's positive aura has atrophied in the hot summer sun.

 

[Murat Baslamisli]

Actually, I do associate Connors and McEnroe with cheating. They smirk about it now, loving their old rogues status, but yeah, I think of cheating when I think of them, as much as I think of their great tennis.

And by the way, Raonic most likely won't be remembered for anything...

But is cheating the very first thing you remember them by? When people mention their names, do you go" Two of the biggest cheaters of all time" or do you replace the word "cheater" with "player" in that sentence?

 

[Kieran]

But is cheating the very first thing you remember them by? When people mention their names, do you go" Two of the biggest cheaters of all time" or do you replace the word "cheater" with "player" in that sentence?

I think it's a bit of both. Firstly, I certainly remember their tennis. But I can't separate the wins from how they got it. By the way, they didn't cheat wholesale and all the time. But it was a something they kept in their satchel for a special occasion. Those guys knew absolutely no limits and had they done what Raonic did, they'd have screamed the place down if the umpire called them on it.

In fairness to them, they also argued mainly because they believed they were right. Bullies usually do. And I believe it's cos of McEnroe that the ATP made rule changes as to how many warnings a player gets, etc. He was disqualified from Oz in 1990 (?) after two warnings and he argued that he didn't know the rule was changed: he believed he had 4 warnings before being thrown out and would have controlled himself had he known, which was proof enough that his abusive tantrums were staged...

 

[DarthFed]

It was disgraceful and the press conference made it a lot worse. It is something that some people will forget but most will not. When someone goes to those lengths to win a point it makes you question what else they will do to win. That is the nature of sports these days. I'm not saying Raonic is on PED's but you can no longer say something like: "Raonic is such a nice and fair guy, there is no way he would ever use PED's" And that is not a good look for Milos or anyone else.

 

[Riotbeard]

Point 1: Raonic was passive aggressive. He tried to have it both ways. Mac and Connors were openly rude and aggressive and accepted the status and social penalties that came with their aggression. They were controversial and polarizing and knew it. Raonic's shoe shuffling and keeping his head down is trying to have it both ways. He tries to say I am a player cut of the same mold as guys like delpo and the big 4, while quietly doing a Mac-esque move. Even tempered cheating for some reason just strikes me differently. Mac and Connors said i will win any way I can and embraced that persona, and you better know this when you face them. Raonic doesn't act like this.

Point 2: We measure Milos against his contemporaries. The culture at the top has been to concede a point if it's obvious that the player is in the wrong. I have seen Novak do this many times, and Delpo also does it. Perhaps 80s tennis was a different culture (don't know I was too young, but it seems likely). I don't defend Novak's early antics, so if this is just one pot-hole in an otherwise long and honorable career, I can get over it and think of him differently.

 

[zalvar]

Actually, I do associate Connors and McEnroe with cheating. They smirk about it now, loving their old rogues status, but yeah, I think of cheating when I think of them, as much as I think of their great tennis.

And by the way, Raonic most likely won't be remembered for anything...

But is cheating the very first thing you remember them by? When people mention their names, do you go" Two of the biggest cheaters of all time" or do you replace the word "cheater" with "player" in that sentence?

Henin. Since 2003 French Semis, I've enjoyed her losses and cringed at her wins. I don't think people forget ... but depending on the threat of the "cheater" to their favorites, they can choose to ignore it or always bring it up.

 

[DarthFed]

Actually, I do associate Connors and McEnroe with cheating. They smirk about it now, loving their old rogues status, but yeah, I think of cheating when I think of them, as much as I think of their great tennis.

And by the way, Raonic most likely won't be remembered for anything...

But is cheating the very first thing you remember them by? When people mention their names, do you go" Two of the biggest cheaters of all time" or do you replace the word "cheater" with "player" in that sentence?

Henin. Since 2003 French Semis, I've enjoyed her losses and cringed at her wins. I don't think people forget ... but depending on the threat of the "cheater" to their favorites, they can choose to ignore it or always bring it up.

Excellent example and good point. Even without being much of a Serena fan that is one of the first things that pops in my mind when I think of Henin. For Serena fans it has to be a lot worse since Justine was her main rival and pretty much the only one who could consistently threaten her.

 

[tented]

Yes, the umpire should have seen it and called it, (or what about all the rest of those lazy lines people?) but there is also the feeling in tennis that you call these things on yourself.

Lines people are not allowed to tell the umpire.

I think in fairness to the umpire, he made a good point. He said he can't watch to see when the ball goes out of play and watch the player at the net at the same time. It seldom occurs but this was one where the player should have raised their racket and called it against themselves...

The umpire did the right thing. Watch the replay in slow motion. He was looking at the ball on the other side of the net at the moment Raonic's foot touched the net. By the time the umpire turned his head back, Raonic had pulled his foot back. According to the ATP rulebook, an umpire cannot make a call on something he didn't see. Period. Even if it's played back on the stadium's big screen.

However, it's also not a rule that a player must call it himself (I checked both the ATP and ITF rulebooks). That's a matter of sportsmanship, and Milos showed how much of that he has.

 

[nehmeth]

And by the way, Raonic most likely won't be remembered for anything...

:clap

 

[herios]

And by the way, Raonic most likely won't be remembered for anything...

:clap

After you'll see his nose for about 10 years, I doubt you'll forget him fast.

 

[nehmeth]

I will think of it every time I drive through the Squirrel Hill tunnels.