LONDON - Milos Raonic says it was the quality of his opponent that contributed to his opening loss at the ATP Finals, and not the nerves from making his debut at the prestigious year-ending tournament. Richard Dent Bears Jersey .Raonic, from Thornhill, Ont., could not duplicate his upset win of just over a week ago against Roger Federer as he lost his opening match to the Swiss star 6-1, 7-6 (0).Raonic denied that he might have been spooked by the unrelenting and overwhelming crowd support for his iconic Swiss opponent and the pressure of the big moment. He said he was simply outplayed by the man he beat nine days ago in a Paris quarter-final, his first win over Federer in seven meetings.Its obviously disappointing, very disappointing actually, the way I finished that second set off, said Raonic, who plays Tuesday against Andy Murray.It took me more a set to find my way into the match because of playing Roger, not because of being here for the first time.Every time you play Roger, the crowds on his side, even if hes playing a local favourite. Its hard for people to cheer against Roger.Federer, a 17-time Grand Slam champion chasing a seventh title at the year-end tournament, saved all four break points he faced to avenge his loss to the big-serving Raonic in Paris.Thankfully he didnt play quite so well, like he did in Paris maybe, the second-seeded Federer said. He gave me a few shots here and there, especially at the beginning of the breaker. I think those were crucial. I was happy to bring it home because it was very close at the end of the second.Earlier, Japans Kei Nishikori beat home favourite Murray 6-4, 6-4, and in doubles action Torontos Daniel Nestor and partner Nenad Zimonjic lost their first match 6-3, 7-5 to Croatias Ivan Dodig and Brazils Marcelo Melo. Raonic went down to Federer in just under 90 minutes.Federer dominated the first set, then had to fight off Raonic as he saved a set point in the second set before wrapping up the win with a love tiebreak.Raonic, who finished with 10 aces, took his total for 2014 past the 1,100 mark. Raonic remains one victory short of his 50th win of the season.He ended with 20 winners, 17 unforced errors and went 0-4 on break point chances.There is always the difficulty of a different atmosphere, different everything in the first round, said Raonic, who served as a London alternate in 2013 but never got onto court.You have to play against one of the best players of all time in that situation. That was the biggest difference, trying to demand a high level right from the get-go.But other than that, it really didnt feel too different than other situations Ive been in.Raonic said it was a different Federer on Sunday than the one he upset in Paris.He was a lot more consistent on his return games, Raonic said. In Paris, Id get free points when I hit aces, but today, when he got his racquet on the ball, he would make me play all the time.I believe he played better today. I believe I started off not playing nearly as well, but I think I sort of found that Paris level in the second set. Thats why I was able to create some opportunities for myself.Meanwhile, Murray is now facing an uphill task to reach the elite tournaments semifinals.The fourth-seeded Nishikori — the first Asian player to qualify for the year-end championship — was in complete control and secured important points in a tough Group B that also includes Federer and Raonic.After the round-robin stage, the top two finishers in each group advance to the semifinals of the indoor tournament at the O2.Obviously now I need to win my next two matches more than likely, and win them well if I want to go through, said Murray, who missed last years tournament after undergoing surgery on his back. Thats going to be tricky because Milos obviously played fantastic last week in Paris, and Roger always plays well at this event. So Im definitely going to have to play better if I want to get through.Murray, who had never lost a set to Nishikori in their three previous matches, only sealed his spot at the season finale last week in Paris following an impressive run that saw him win 20 of his previous 23 matches.But the former Wimbledon champion never looked capable of turning the match around. He dismissed the idea that fatigue finally took its toll on him.I felt OK on the court today, he said. I dont think that was the reason why I lost the match.Murray, who had expressed worries that he could be rejected by local fans after coming out in favour of Scottish independence in September, received a warm welcome as he entered the court.The Scot secured the first break in the fifth game after taking advantage of his opponents unforced errors but could not hold his next serve after hitting two double-faults.Nishikori did not serve well either, hitting eight double-faults and averaging a low first-serve percentage of 46. But Murrays struggles were even worse, winning only seven points on his second serve.I didnt serve well enough. He was able to dictate a lot of points, especially behind my second serve, said Murray. That was the difference.After a cautious start, Nishikori pushed Murray into long rallies before overwhelming him with powerful groundstrokes. Pegged back well behind his baseline, Murray saved one set point with a crosscourt forehand that Nishikori could not return but fluffed a backhand drop shot on the next one.The Japanese player continued at the same pace in the second set and broke for a 2-0 lead after leaving Murray stranded on the baseline with a fine drop shot. The two-time Grand Slam winner fought hard to save three break points in the fourth game to stay in the match and a series of errors from Nishikori in the seventh game helped him to break back.Murray levelled at 4-4 but could not build on the momentum as Nishikori converted his first match point in the 10th game when Murray dropped his serve for the fourth time following three consecutive backhand errors.The second set was almost perfect, said Nishikori. I knew he is very consistent from the baseline so I knew I had to be more aggressive than usual and thats how I won today.Nestor, playing his last event with longtime partner Zimonjic, sealed his sides fate as he double-faulted to put his team into a 5-6 hole in the second set.The second seeds could not recover, with Dodig and Melo winning a game later on the first of three match points.We had too many mistakes, too many double-faults, Nestor said. We gave them some points, they played well, but we shot ourselves in the foot today.Im trying to win, no matter who I play with, obviously it would be nice to win our last tournament together. Nestor and Zimonjic, who won the year-end title in 2008 and 2010, finished with seven aces but were able to convert on only one of four break point chances against Dodig and Melo.The pair have split up for 2015, with Nestor teaming with Indian Rohan Bopanna.— With files from The Associated Press Dan Hampton Jersey . The former Edmonton Oilers defenceman was with the St. Louis Blues in training camp on a professional tryout. Whitney, 30, had four goals and 13 points in 34 games with the Oilers last season. William Perry Bears Jersey . Napoli beat high-flying Hellas Verona 3-0 to keep up the pressure on the top two while AC Milan had another disappointing night as four goals from teenage forward Domenico Berardi saw relegation-threatened Sassuolo come back from two goals down to win 4-3. https://www.bearssportsgoods.com/Womens-Tom-Waddle-Inverted-Jersey/ .com) - Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki was named the National League Player of the Month for April.SEATTLE -- Derek Jeter made his final regular season appearance in Seattle memorable. Seemed appropriate. Of all the stops on Jeters season-long farewell tour, Seattle holds a bit more meaning because this is where his career started. "You tend to think about the first time you came, when you got here," Jeter said. "Its still hard to think Im not going to play another game here but when you come to some of these cities you start thinking about a lot of the memories youve had here. Seattle will always be special because it was the beginning." Jeter had three hits, two RBIs and scored twice as the New York Yankees completed their first three-game sweep of the season with a 6-3 win over the Mariners on Thursday night. Jeter was honoured by the Mariners before the start of the series, then helped jump start the Yankees. Jeter had singles in his first two at-bats off Seattle starter Roenis Elias (5-5), then greeted reliever Dominic Leone with a two-run single in the fourth that gave the Yankees a 6-1 lead. Jeter finished the series with seven hits. "It feels good to come out here and win three games. Its not an easy place to win," New York manager Joe Girardi said. "Obviously they pitch very well and we had not scored a lot of runs off them." This night, and much of the series, was about Jeters farewell tour. His professional start came in Seattle in May 1995. He was given thundering ovations every time he stepped to the plate. Jeter received a standing ovation from the entire stadium on his final at-bat in the ninth. He grounded out on a comebacker to the mound and tipped his helmet as he jogged of the field. "Fans have always been good to me here. Even when they get on you a little bit they still respect you," Jeter said. "They were awesome." Jacoby Ellsbury hit a two-run homer in the first inning to extend his hitting streak to 16 games and gave starter Chase Whitley (2-0) an early lead. Whitley threw a career-high 7 2-3 innings to get his second straight win. He also got a huge defensive play from Ellsbury in thee fifth, robbing former Yankees star Robinson Cano of at least a RBI double with a leaping catch at the wall in centre field. Anthony Miller Bears Jersey. Whitley allowed just five hits and his only mistake was a pitch left up in the strike zone to Logan Morrison, who hit a line drive homer in the second inning. Whitley struck out six and has not walked a batter in his past four starts. David Robertson got the final two outs for his 16th save. "Chase has been consistent with his stuff. He doesnt beat himself. He doesnt walk people. Hes doing the little things," Girardi said. "Hes mixed in an outstanding changeup with his fastball and slider. He gets ahead in the count. We only saw him as a reliever. We werent sure what we had as a starter but hes done a really good job." Ellsbury did give the Yankees a brief scare when he left later in the game with tightness in his right hip. Ellsbury said he expected to be in the lineup Friday in Oakland. Both times Seattle was on the verge of a rally it could not get a two-out hit. The Mariners had runners at the corners in the third but Kyle Seager struck out looking on an inside fastball. In the fifth, James Jones chopped a two-out single to score Brad Miller. Cano then drove the first pitch from Whitley to deep left-centre, only to watch Ellsbury jump and haul in the drive crashing into the wall. Two innings later Brett Gardner added another defensive gem, hauling in Mike Zuninos drive at the top of the fence in left-centre to take away extra bases. Whitley said he was already looking toward the umpire for a new ball thinking Zuninos drive had left the park. "They were making good plays out there, keeping the ball in the yard and saving their guy some runs," Zunino said. "Thats all you can do is try and square the ball up." NOTES: Grammy Award-winning hip-hop artist Macklemore threw out the first pitch on the night he was honoured by the Mariners with a bobblehead. ... Yankees are 17-10 in their last 27 road games. ... Whitley has gone 114 consecutive batters without issuing a walk. ' ' '