Novak Djokovic beats Juan Martin del Potro in three sets to make Acapulco quarter-finals

Novak Djokovic overcame some early struggles to conquer Juan Martin del Potro in an epic battle to make the quarter-finals in Acapulco.

After an earlier easy win for Rafael Nadal, top seed Djokovic was in action in the early hours of Thursday as he overcame the Argentine veteran in three thrilling sets 4-6 6-4 6-4.

The Serb is in action this week for the first time since his shock second-round exit at the Australian Open in January and his stunning efforts against Del Potro earned him a quarter-final clash with Australia's Nick Kyrgios.

"Every time you play against Delpo, there's a lot of tension, emotions and quality of play," Djokovic said. "I'm happy I was able to beat him this time."

Sixth-seeded Kyrgios defeated American Donald Young 6-2 6-4.

It was a more comfortable day's work for Nadal, who dropped just two games as he brushed aside Paolo Lorenzi to make the last eight.

The second-seeded Spaniard, a two-time winner at this Mexican event and playing his first tournament since falling to Roger Federer in the Australian Open final, breezed past the 38th-ranked Lorenzi 6-1 6-1.

"I played a complete match today and I*m feeling great after a month without playing," Nadal said.

Nadal dropped just seven points on his serve, never facing a break point. He broke the Italian for the fifth time in the final game of the match, delivering a stinging forehand winner to wrap up the win in just 66 minutes.

Nadal next faces Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka, a 6-4 3-6 6-0 winner over Australian lucky loser Jordan Thompson.

Third-seeded Marin Cilic booked his quarter-final berth with a 6-3 2-6 6-3 victory over fellow Croatian Borna Coric.

Cilic remained unbeaten against his 20-year-old compatriot. He fired a dozen aces, and broke Coric three times to set up a clash with American Steve Johnson, a 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 winner over American wildcard Ernesto Escobedo.

New customers: Grab a NOW TV Sky Sports Month Pass for £20pm for the first two months and catch a blockbuster period of live Sky Sports action. No contract. And stay glued in to all the latest tennis action from the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

£20 Month Pass Offer

New customers: Grab a Sky Sports Month Pass for £20pm for the first 2 months. No contract.

Don't forget to follow us skysports.com/tennis, our app for mobile devices and iPad or our Twitter account @skysportstennis for news, reports, live blogs and expert analysis.