Raonic beats Monfils to set up Murray semifinal

Milos Raonic proved too good for Frenchman Gael Monfils on Wednesday as he became the first Canadian to reach the Australian Open semi-finals and set up a clash with Andy Murray.

The 13th seed with the powerful serve won 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in two hours, 17 minutes to reach what will be his second Grand Slam semi-final after Wimbledon 2014.

Raonic also extended his unbeaten run this year to nine matches. He has not lost at tour level since going down to Rafael Nadal in the third round at Shanghai in October.

The purposeful and composed Canadian broke the Monfils serve three times and hit 47 winners, 17 with his cracking forehand.

Raonic, 25, lost to Roger Federer in his only other Grand Slam semi-final at Wimbledon two years ago and now gets another opportunity against four-time runner-up Murray on Friday.

“It’s a great challenge ahead of me. A challenge that I believe I have with myself to find a solution to,” Raonic said.

“A great fight that I am going to put on out there with all my heart, all my effort and hopefully I can make the most of my opportunity.”