I was careful after the surgery. It paid off

TORONTO -- Canadas Milos Raonic boasts one of the strongest power games on the mens tennis tour. On Friday night, his game was undone by an unseeded opponent who picked his style apart. Spains Feliciano Lopez eliminated Raonic from the Rogers Cup with a 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-3 quarter-final victory in front of a surprised crowd at Rexall Centre. Raonic, the No. 6 seed from Thornhill, Ont., struggled early and was hampered by unforced errors on the stadium showcourt. Raonic hung in there despite his inconsistency but couldnt convert one of the nine break point opportunities he had in a pivotal 12-minute game midway through the deciding set. Lopez later picked up a break before closing out the win. "I just need to show in a few situations more courage and go for it a little bit more," Raonic said. "Not just that third set but all throughout the match." Raonics trademark rocket serve was still a weapon but his rhythm on the baseline was affected by Lopezs unique style. The crafty left-handed Spaniard mixed things up with cut shots, chip-and-chase strokes and a nice variety of drops and lobs. The change in pace seemed to handcuff Raonic at times. His ground strokes were still powerful but they were weakened when Lopez forced the Canadian wider on court or made him change his approach. The Spaniard said he went heavy on his second serves and was fortunate to hang in there in the third set. "I mean to save nine break points in the same game -- even though I played great (for) most of them -- I have to get a little bit lucky," Lopez said. He completed the victory in one hour 57 minutes to quiet the vocal near-capacity crowd. "Two mistakes, one break and thats it. This is tennis," Lopez said. Lopez will play Roger Federer of Switzerland in the semifinals on Saturday. The second-seeded Swiss star defeated No. 5 David Ferrer of Spain 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 in the late quarter-final. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France also reached the final four with a 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-4 victory over Britains Andy Murray. Tsonga will meet seventh-seeded Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria, who outlasted South Africas Kevin Anderson 5-7, 7-5, 7-6 (6). Raonic relied on his powerful ground strokes but the results were mixed as he sprayed a number of shots and had several mishits. The 23-year-old right-hander didnt hide his frustration. At 2-2 and with serve in the opening set, Raonic shouted out in frustration after dropping the first two points of the game. His next shot went long and another mishit gave Lopez the first service break of the match. Raonic threw an exasperated look at his coach at the changeover and couldnt pull even, with Lopez sealing the set with an overhead smash. The Canadian came out strong in the second set by taking the first five points. He was still having trouble with the spin on some of Lopezs shots but the pace of the match started to open up with longer rallies. The players went back and forth with mini-breaks in the tiebreaker. Raonic converted his first set point when Lopez fired a ball long as he tripped while approaching the net. The Spaniard landed awkwardly on his wrist and could be seen trying to loosen it up before the third set. It apparently wasnt a bother as Lopez was steady on serve and consistent down the stretch. "He did a good job," Raonic said. "He stepped up and played well in the important moments, especially on his service game." Earlier, the 13th-seeded Tsonga picked up his second straight upset victory by knocking off the eighth-seeded Murray, who had won nine of 10 previous meetings against the Frenchman. Tsonga was coming off a convincing win over top-seeded Novak Djokovic. "This week is kind of rewards for me," Tsonga said. "To play like this, to beat two guys in the top 10. Its good and I hope it will continue." Tsonga, who had an 18-7 edge in aces over Murray, won 83 per cent of points when his first serve was in. "I was able to serve maybe 220 (km/h) all match and for me its something great when Im serving like this," Tsonga said. "Im able to play good tennis." Murray said it was a much faster-paced match than his tournament opener against Nick Kyrgios. The two-time Rogers Cup champ had reached the quarter-finals on a walkover when Richard Gasquet withdrew due to an abdominal injury. "Jo is a top player, hes a fantastic athlete," Murray said. "When his game is on, hes very tough to beat." In mens doubles play, the third-seeded team of Torontos Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia advanced with a 2-6, 6-3, 14-12 win over No. 5 Julien Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France. No. 4 Ivan Dodig of Croatia and Marcelo Melo of Brazil beat seventh-seeded Spaniards Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez 4-6, 6-4, 10-8. The second-seeded duo of Alexander Peya of Austria and Bruno Soares of Brazil defeated Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands and Romanias Horia Tecau 7-6 (4), 6-4. Federer was the highest-seeded player left in the singles draw after three of the top four seeds were eliminated Thursday. He improved to 15-0 lifetime against Ferrer. Raonic, meanwhile, was coming off a tournament victory last weekend in Washington and fell to 2-2 against Lopez. He has six career wins on the ATP Tour but is still looking for his first Masters 1000 title. All three of his matches were three-set affairs at the US$3.78-million tournament. His focus now turns to the next hardcourt warmup event in Ohio ahead of the U.S. Open. "Im competing well and fighting well and I know I can play much better tennis," Raonic said. "The goal has always been get better each week to be playing my best tennis in New York, and thats what Im most looking forward to. "Cincinnati is the next step to getting better." Raonic reached the final at last years Rogers Cup in Montreal before losing to Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard is not back to defend his title due to a wrist injury. Pittsburgh Penguins Pro Shop . Neither side would publicly confirm or deny any discussions were taking place, until the near unexpected happened. On Saturday night sources confirmed to TSN, the league and players agreed to terms on a new, tentative CBA, pending ratification by the unions players. A league source confirmed the CFLs board of governors must also ratify any potential agreement. Stitched Penguins Jerseys . Crawford hit his slam off Pirates starter Edinson Volquez to give San Francisco a four run lead in the fourth and they never looked back. Brandon Belt had three runs batted in as well. Bumgarner pitched all nine innings and allowed just four hits. https://www.cheappenguinsjersey.com/. During the furious first few hours of free agency Tuesday, the team agreed to terms with strong safety Donte Whitner, a Cleveland native who cant wait to play in his hometown. Wholesale Penguins Jerseys . -- Jacksonville Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew practiced in a limited capacity Friday, a positive sign he might be able to play against the Tennessee Titans. Cheap Penguins Jerseys . Mako Vunipola was promoted from the reserves, with Matt Mullan called up to the bench on Thursday. "It is important that Joe is with his partner at this exciting time," England coach Stuart Lancaster said.DENVER -- Colorado Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez was activated from the disabled list on Friday after he missed 35 games because of left index finger inflammation. To make roster room for Gonzalez, who was in the starting lineup Friday night against Minnesota, the Rockies optioned right-handed pitcher Jair Jurrjens to their Triple-A affiliate in Colorado Springs. Gonzalez, sidelined since June 3, underwent finger surgery a week later after doctors discovered a benign tumour. "He has some peace of mind with that finger," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. "The first part of the season, that finger was blowing up. For no rhyme or reason. All of a sudden, in the middle of the game, he would make solid contact or hit the ball off the end of the bat, that finger would swell up. It was obviously an issue going on."; Before rejoining the Rockies, Gonzalez made four rehab appearances with Colorado Springs this week.dddddddddddd "Im feeling good," Gonzalez said before the game. "Im happy being back in the lineup. I took my time. Its a slow process. I was careful after the surgery. It paid off." The time off also helped alleviate lingering soreness from left knee tendinitis that had bothered him for much of the season. Gonzalez was batting .255 in 52 games. He entered this season with a career average of .300. "The time off has certainly helped his knee," Weiss said. "It is something that has hindered him from time to time. The time off is going to help that." Gonzalez, who usually plays left field, was slated to start in right field and bat third. "Well see what he can do," Weiss said. ' ' '