Rafael Nadal continued his impressive start to the Australian Open, dropping just five games in romping to a straight sets win over Damir Dzumhur on Friday.
The Spanish world No.1 took just 1hr 50min to reach the fourth round with a 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 demolition of the 28th seeded Bosnian on Margaret Court Arena.
Nadal, a losing finalist to Roger Federer last year in Melbourne, has lost only 21 games in his three victories to reach the round of 16. The 16-time Grand Slam champion conceded just 18 unforced errors and only dropped his service once.
He will take on Argentina’s 24th seed Diego Schwartzman in Sunday’s fourth round.
The win took the 31-year-old’s Australian Open record to 54-11 as he chases his second Melbourne title after beating Federer in the 2009 final.
Nadal was ruthless against the Bosnian, breaking his serve seven times with blistering shot-making. He breezed through the opening set with two breaks for the loss of just one game in 22 minutes. He then broke Dzumhur in the opening game of the second and finished off the set with another break for a two sets lead. Nadal continued to attack Dzumhur and broke him in the second and sixth games to wrap up his night.
Kyrgios tops Tsonga in action-packed match
Australia’s Nick Kyrgios won an electric four-setter with his idol Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to advance to the round of 16.
The 17th seeded Kyrgios needed three tiebreakers to win a crunch match with the former finalist 7-6 (7/5), 4-6, 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/5) in 3hr 17min in a spectacular night match on Rod Laver Arena.
It pitches the volatile Australian into a round of 16 showdown with Bulgaria’s world No.3 Grigor Dimitrov on Sunday.
Kyrgios, urged on by his home crowd, traded breathtaking volleys with Tsonga, who lost to Novak Djokovic in the 2008 Australian final when Kyrgios was a 12-year-old fan.
“It was amazing. I’ve never won a match on this court before but playing Jo I was obviously very nervous,” Kyrgios said on court.
“He was a guy I looked up to as a kid, still do, he’s a great guy. I’m just so happy to get through.
“I was getting prepared for a fifth set in that (fourth set) tiebreaker.
“I thought he was going to hit two big first serves and I was in a lot of trouble but I stayed composed, tied to make some returns and fight it out.”
Dimitrov gets back on track
Bulgaria’s world No.3 Grigor Dimitrov wrestled with his serve before dousing young Russian Andrey Rublev to reach the round of 16 at the Australian Open on Friday.
Dimitrov, who needed five sets to scramble past American qualifier Mackenie McDonald in the second round, held on for a fluctuating 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 win in just over three hours on Rod Laver Arena.
He will next face either Australia’s 17th seed Nick Kyrgios or former winner Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France for a place in the quarter-finals.
But Dimitrov is grappling with his serve and gave up 15 double faults, including an embarrassing three when he was serving for the third set.
His unrestrained joy upon winning showed his relief at finally putting Rublev away in the topsy-turvy contest.
“These are the most important matches for me, when things are not working for me and I find a way,” he said. “I’m feeling good physically, the heat didn’t scare me at all today, so that’s a good sign.”
He will next face the winner of an intriguing night match which pits Australian Nick Kyrgios against French veteran Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Karlovic sets service record but Seppi wins veteran battle
Italian Andreas Seppi edged out Croatia’s Ivo Karlovic in a titanic five-set battle of the veterans to claim a place in the round of 16 at the Australian Open on Friday.
Seppi, ranked 76, fought off the 89th-ranked Karlovic 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (3/7), 6-7 (5/7), 9-7 in 3hr 51min on Hisense Arena.
The Italian, 33, reached the fourth round for the second consecutive year where he will face Britain’s Kyle Edmund on Sunday.
“It’s always difficult. I think today was more mentally than physically,” Seppi said.
“I mean, in the end it was a very long match. Leading two sets to love, then playing the fifth where you know there is no tiebreak, you know you have to break him, it is not easy. There was, for sure, relief in the end. I was very happy.”
The victory levelled his head-to-head record with Karlovic at 2-2. Seppi is appearing in his 51st consecutive Grand Slam event, while Karlovic, 38, was bidding to become the oldest man to reach the round of 16 at a Grand Slam since American Jimmy Connors at the 1991 US Open.
Busta makes first round of 16 at Melbourne
Spanish 10th seed Pablo Carreno Busta reached the round of 16 for the first time at the Australian Open with a four-set victory over Gilles Muller on Friday.
Carreno Busta, a semi-finalist at last year’s US Open, won 7-6 (7/4), 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 in a 3h 18min match played out in the heat of the day on Margaret Court Arena.
The Spaniard, who won the exhibition Kooyong Classic event in Melbourne last week, will face either Croatia’s sixth seed Marin Cilic or American Ryan Harrison in Sunday’s fourth round.
In a tight contest, Carreno Busta broke Muller’s left-handed serve twice and lost his just once along with 48 winners and just 22 unforced errors.
It was Carreno Busta’s third win over the 28th-ranked Muller in as many meetings.
British hope Edmund powers to Round of 16
Britain’s Kyle Edmund reached the round of 16 for the first time at the Australian Open with a fighting five-set win over Nikoloz Basilashvili on Friday.
The 49th-ranked Edmund fought back taking the last two sets in blistering heat to win 7-6 (7/0), 3-6, 4-6, 6-0, 7-5 in 3hr 34min on Show Court Two.
He turned the match by winning a marathon 20-minute second game in the fourth set, which ebbed and flowed for 15 deuces with the British player taking it on his eighth break point.
From there he powered on and edged out the Georgian in a tight fifth set.
Edmund, who upset 11th seed Kevin Anderson in the opening round and followed it up with a win over Denis Istomin, will now face either Italian Andreas Seppi in Sunday’s fourth round who got the better of Ivo Karlovic in a marathon match.
Edmund, the only British man in the main draw after Andy Murray’s injury withdrawal, reached the round of 16 at the 2016 US Open where he fell to Novak Djokovic.
The British player hit 20 aces among his 70 winners and broke Basilashvili’s serve seven times from 27 opportunities for his second career win over the Georgian.
All Results
Kyle Edmund (GBR) bt Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO) 7-6 (7/0), 3-6, 4-6, 6-0, 7-5
Pablo Carreno-Busta (ESP x10) bt Gilles Muller (LUX x23) 7-6 (7/4), 4-6, 7-5, 7-5
Grigor Dimitrov (BUL x3) bt Andrey Rublev (RUS x30) 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
Diego Schwartzman (ARG x24) bt Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) 6-7 (1/7), 6-2, 6-3, 6-3
Andreas Seppi (ITA) bt Ivo Karlovic (CRO) 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (3/7), 6-7 (5/7), 9-7
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