Roger Federer put his third round scare at the Australian Open behind him, cruising past 13th seed Tomas Berdych in straight sets, 6-4 7-6 (9/7) 6-3 to book his place in the quarter finals in Melbourne on Monday.
Federer, who needed four and a half hours to see off Janko Tipsarevic on Saturday, looked much more at ease against the Czech, although he did have a few anxious moments in the second set before wrapping up the win just under two hours.
It was apparent from early on that Berdych was not going to give Federer many opportunities to establish an advantage.
But the Swiss was just as resilient, conceding just four points on his own serve in the first set before breaking Berdych late on to win it 6-4.
The Czech secured the first break of the second set but a determined Federer broke back quickly to level.
Both men looked strong on serve and it was no surprise when the set went to a tie-breaker.
Berdych twice made unforced errors on set points and then made another mistake on set point to lose 9-7 and go two sets down.
Federer upped his game in the third and was completely dominant on serve and Berdych finally cracked in the sixth game and was broken to love.
From that point on, it was simply a matter of Federer serving out the match and he did so with consummate ease.
The Swiss master now plays James Blake in the quarter finals after the American had earlier beaten Marin Cilic in straight sets.
After this lastest triumph, in a warning to all those eyeing his crown, Federer said he was feeling in top shape despite the five-set battle against Tipsarevic and an interrupted preparation in which he missed the traditional warm-up event at Kooyong due to illness.
"I felt good," the top seed said. "Of course it throws off your rhythm a little bit playing a five-setter, especially during a tournament.
"Usually I play five-setters (only) in finals like in Miami, Rome and Wimbledon so it's a bit different to back it up.
"But honestly I felt good and I am looking forward to seeing how I feel in the next match again."
But Federer is taking nothing for granted against Blake, despite his dominant history against the 28-year-old New Yorker.
"He has improved a lot the last couple of years," Federer said of the American he has beaten in each of their seven meetings.
"He plays incredibly aggressive tennis and he has improved his serve and backhand a lot so I have to be very careful.
"I know his game sort of suits my game and I've had some great matches against him where I always play my very best.
"We'll see what happens this time but I'm excited to play against him.
"He's one the nicest guys on tour, very respected, very sportsmanlike so it's going to be enjoyable to play against him."
Source : www.sportinglife.com
