MONACO -- Canadian Milos Raonic is out at the Monte Carlo Masters. The hard-serving native of Thornhill, Ont., was limited to just six aces in a 7-6 (5), 6-2 quarter-final loss to third-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka on Friday. Raonic, seeded eighth, was playing his first clay quarter-final at the Masters 1000 level but struggled with consistency against his Swiss opponent, the reigning Australian Open winner. Raonic, 23, is currently ranked No. 10 on the ATP but has lost all three head-to-head matches against Wawrinka. The previous two were hardcourt contests in 2012 and 2013. Raonic played well in an opening set that lasted nearly an hour before getting into trouble in the tiebreaker. He held leads of 3-0 and 5-3 but mental lapses allowed Wawrinka to rally for the victory. Raonic stormed out to a 40-0 lead to start the second set but again Wawrinka rallied to earn the break and take the early lead. "Stan found a rhythm and played more free," said Raonic. "On the key points, he was really going for his shots. He overtook me and started dictating. "But Ive done something Ive never done before (reach quarter-finals on clay at Masters level), so its still very positive for me." Raonic was broken in the seventh game to trail 5-2 before Wawrinka cemented the win a game later. "I was really focused on my serve to be really aggressive from the first shot, to make him move, to make him work every ball," Wawrinka said. "I just feel strong from the baseline. I feel good physically. "I know that on clay courts, if I play my best tennis, I can beat those guys." Raonic will try to regroup as the French Open draws closer but found solace with his accomplishment in this clay event. "I have to be happy with things if I look at the big picture," he said. "Of course I wish I would have done better, but after one week on clay Im playing well. "I had expected to work through the weeks up to Paris, getting better as I go along. Thats still the goal. I need to get better on the clay, spend more time on it and do all the clay-specific fitness. This week does give me confidence though." In doubles action, Torontos Daniel Nestor and Serbian Nenad Zimonjic, who won this event in 09 and 10, face Monacos Romain Arneodo and Benjamin Balleret in quarter-final action. In other singles play, Rafael Nadal lost his quarter-final match to Spanish compatriot David Ferrer 7-6 (1), 6-4. Its Nadals earliest exit at the Monte Carlo Masters in 11 years. While he beat Nadal just last year, Ferrer hadnt defeated Nadal on clay since 2004. A day after becoming the 11th man in the Open era to reach 300 wins on clay, Nadal committed 44 unforced errors and was broken four times. Ferrer lost his own serve three times in the match that lasted over two hours. Nadal won eight consecutive Monte Carlo titles from 2005-12 before he lost last years final to Novak Djokovic. Ferrer will face Wawrinka in semifinal action. "I know I am supposed to be among the favourites, but every time I play a match I am in the state of mind of a challenger who is trying to win an additional match," said Wawrinka. Swiss star Roger Federer advanced with a 2-6, 7-6 (6), 6-1 win against No. 9 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France. Federer was two points from defeat at 0-30 serving at 6-5 down in the second set. Federer, who improved to 11-4 against Tsonga, wasted 15 straight break points and three set points in the second set But at 6-6 in the tiebreaker, Tsonga hit a wild forehand into the net and Federer tied the match with a volley winner. After finally breaking Tsonga at the 16th try, Federer clenched his fist in relief. He broke him again with a forehand winner down the line and held for 5-0. "It was just many things went wrong at the wrong time for me: Jo playing well, me playing wrong at certain times, wrong shot selections," Federer said. "Im happy I found the way to tough it out." Tsonga said the changing conditions in the late afternoon as the match went into a third set suited Federers style of play more. "I dont think it was that much of a change. I dont think there was any wind change or any crazy, like, quickness change," Federer said. "We played in those conditions a million of times." Djokovic set up a 34th career meeting against Federer, a 17-time Grand Slam champion, by downing unseeded Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 4-6, 6-3, 6-1. "I started very poorly. Garcia-Lopez played well and I had to work for this win," Djokovic said. "I finally started to play as I wanted in the second set." Federer leads Djokovic 17-16 in head-to-head matches and they are 1-1 this year. Federer won in the Dubai Championship semifinals while Djokovic emerged victorious in their showdown in the final at Indian Wells. The Serb was close to losing against Garcia-Lopez, saving a break point in the fifth game of the second set and two more when trailing 15-40 in his next service game. Djokovic then made a crucial break to take a 5-3 lead, served out the set, and then broke Garcia-Lopez twice at the start of the third. Michel Vorm Jersey . The club announced on Wednesday that Malhotra signed a 25-game professional tryout contract. The 33-year-old suffered a serious eye injury when struck by a puck during a game versus Colorado in March of 2011. Nabil Bentaleb Jersey . 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. http://www.hotspurfcproshop.com/jan-vertonghen-hotspur-jersey-uk/ .I shared with him how much I appreciated all he had done for us, Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said of that Thursday night farewell. Eric Dier Jersey . a€“ All signs point to the Maple Leafs having their top offseason acquisition in the lineup on opening night. Georges-Kevin NKoudou Jersey . The punch happened in the fourth quarter of Milwaukees 116-102 loss to the Kings on Wednesday when the two players became entangled while battling for rebounding position. MINNEAPOLIS -- For a guy who was drafted second overall just three years ago, Derrick Williams has enjoyed precious little security in his short time with the Minnesota Timberwolves. His name has been the subject of trade rumours almost from the moment he was drafted, and he has spent his first two seasons in the league trying to get on the same page with Wolves coach Rick Adelman while grasping the complexities of learning two positions. So when he finally gets a little something to hold on to, its no surprise that Williams is appreciative. Timberwolves president Flip Saunders informed Williams on Tuesday morning that the team will pick up his contract option for next season, guaranteeing the $6.3 million on the deal. "I think everybody knows that if they didnt pick up my option I would have been unrestricted (free agent) and, basically, could have done whatever," Williams said after practice. "So it helps, the security. Youre guaranteed at least one more year in the NBA, you know? And, as long as you have that, I think everything is good." The decision by the Timberwolves doesnt mean Williams wont continue to see his name in the trade rumour mill. Hes still adjusting to playing two positions -- small forward in addition to his more natural power forward -- and he admits he still has a lot to learn on both ends of the court. "Its tough. Especially when, ever since Ive been here, Ive heard trade rumours," Williams said. "Really since I was picked. So itt seems like every other day there is something new.dddddddddddd" But hes also just 22 years old, and Saunders sees him as a young asset that deserves the chance to continue to develop. Williams is the second-leading scorer for the Wolves in the preseason and has a chance to be the teams starting small forward while Chase Budinger recovers from a knee injury. Adelman said he has been pleased with how hard Williams has been working, which appears to be progress for a coach who hasnt always been happy with the youngsters effort. "I think hes played very hard," Adelman said. "He rebounded the ball very well the other night (against Boston) and its a process for him. Its kind of a disadvantage when he has to play two spots because youre jumping back and forth. Right now thats what we have to do." Williams averaged 15.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and shot 34 per cent from 3-point range over the final 33 games of the season while filling in at power forward for the injured Kevin Love. But with Love back this season, Williams will have to be able to play small forward to get significant minutes. He feels more confident this year than he ever has, so much so that he thinks he should be starting on opening night against Orlando on Oct. 30. "I think I deserve to be," Williams said. "Thats why they drafted me here. They didnt draft me to come off the bench, things like that. Ultimately, its up to Coach. Im just here to play basketball." 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