Federer punctures Dimitrov surge to record 300th Grand Slam win

Williams next plays Margarita Gasparyan of Russian Federation, who beat Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 6-3, 6-4 earlier Friday.

Federer is now 67 wins ahead of No. 2 and long-retired Jimmy Connors in terms of Grand Slam singles victories.

It was Dimitrov’s seventh straight loss to a Top-10 player.

“Parts of the draw always open up at the Australian Open and you get someone surprising coming through to make the quarter-finals and semi-finals”.

The 2004 Wimbledon champion, now 28, said: “Oh wow, I have won 600 matches”.

Dimitrov needed treatment for an undisclosed ailment at times, but Federer didn’t cut him any slack – he lost in the third round here previous year, his worst run at Melbourne Park since 2001.

She also had her left ankle treated by a trainer, but shook off any injury concerns, saying, “pain is my second name”. Radwanska overcame Puig 6-4 6-0 to secure a sixth successive fourth-round berth at Melbourne Park on Friday. Maria Sharapova and Belinda Bencic were both forced into third sets, but both eventually managed to avoid being yet another seed to fall.

“I’ve had days, not just in slams, but in any tournaments, where I felt great, practised really well, and then gone on the court and felt terrible”.

“It’s very exciting, I must tell you”, Federer told reporters. “I didn’t feel right”, Federer said.

At the 2016 Australian Open, Day 5 was another that saw thrilling matches, and 16 players (8 men and 8 women) book their spots in the second week of the season’s first grand slam.

“There’s more professional tennis players than ever”.

Serena Williams (1), United States, def. Daria Kasatkina, Russia, 6-1, 6-1. Dimitrov eventually held and went on to take the set and level the match.

Maria Sharapova also weathered a fightback when she beat pint-sized American Lauren Davis 6-1, 6-7 (5/7), 6-0, helped by a strategic break and change of dress, for her 600th career win.

“I definitely think I played better today”.

With the rain having wrecked the doubles schedule, none of the Brits scheduled to play got on court as the priority was to push through the third round schedule. Seven doubles matches have been postponed.

Muguruza misfired frequently on her groundstrokes, finishing with 32 unforced errors, and appeared to be lethargic at stages of the match.

Berdych next plays Roberto Bautista Agut, whose three-set win over the former US Open champion Marin Cilic, seeded 12, was a mild surprise more than a shock.

She has beaten Sharapova in every match they have played since 2004.

Below, the results from the pertinent singles matches.

The current world number one, Novak Djokovic, made his professional debut in 2003, a full five years after Federer. Federer struggled to penetrate on Dimitrov’s serve and was blending aces with uncharacteristically bladed ground shots on his own serve.

Though Dimitrov hung tough, including holding serve during a five deuce game late in the set to avoid going down a double break, Federer proved too solid down the stretch to allow Dimitrov any hope of getting back in this one.

The Russian fifth seed eventually secured a 6-1 6-7 (5-7) 6-0 win over Davis after an inconsistent display on Rod Laver Arena.

Kei Nishikori (7), Japan, def. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (26), Spain, 7-5, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

And now Federer rolls into the second week, where No. 15 seed David Goffin awaits.