Roger Federer eases past Tomas Berdych at the Australian Open
Federer strolls through to fourth round where he will meet Kei Nishikori
Saturday 21 January 2017 09:46, UK
Roger Federer delivered a stunning reminder of his class at the Australian Open with a 6-2 6-4 6-4 win over Tomas Berdych to storm into the fourth round.
Playing only his third tour match since coming back from a knee injury, Federer was expected to be tested by the hard-hitting Czech but he sent the 10th seed packing after a masterclass at a floodlit Rod Laver Arena.
The 35-year-old, seeded 17th after an injury-hit 2016, had shown rust in his earlier matches but was in spell-binding form, wrapping up the match with an imperious cross-court backhand.
Federer breezed through the opening set in 26 minutes, made it 2-0 another 31 minutes later and cruised through the final set in 33 minutes to complete an astonishing demolition of one of his long-time rivals.
He broke Berdych's big serve four times and did not face one break point on his own service game, while hitting 40 winners against just 17 unforced errors.
"I always felt I lift my game against the higher-ranked players, but I didn't expect it to go this hard," Federer said moments after his brilliant victory.
"I had no expectations really for tonight, but I did surprise myself."
Federer will meet fifth-seed Kei Nishikori for a place in the quarter-finals, after the Japanese ace made it to the last 16 for the sixth straight year with a 6-4 6-4 6-4 victory over qualifier Lukas Lacko.
"There were some little tough moments, but I stayed tough in the third set," Nishikori said.
Nishikori broke the 121st-ranked Lacko's serve four times and gave up his own service only once.
"I did well with my service games and came up with some important first serves on the big points," he said.
"I am feeling well physically and mentally and I've been playing well in my three matches in Melbourne."
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