Another Federer milestone: win No. 300 at a Grand Slam
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Roger Federer was already a long way clear at the top of the list of men with the most wins in Grand Slam singles matches, so becoming the first to 300 wasn't a major distraction.
He reached the milestone at Rod Laver Arena on Friday, when he moved into the fourth round of the Australian Open with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory over Grigor Dimitrov.
"It's very exciting, I must tell you," Federer said of his latest record, adding that reaching 1,000 wins in tour matches last year was also a cause for celebration. "It was a big deal for me.
"Not something I ever aimed for or looked for, but when it happens, it's very special. Yeah, you look deeper into it, I guess, where it's all happened and how. So it's very nice."
Defending champions and top-ranked Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic had night matches starting at the same time on nearby courts.
Six-time champion Serena Williams raced to a 6-1, 6-1 win in 45 minutes over 18-year-old Russian Daria Kasatkina on Rod Laver Arena. She will next play Margarita Gasparyan, who beat Yulia Putintseva 6-3, 6-4.
Djokovic needed only 25 minutes to win the first set against No. 28-seeded Andreas Seppi but had a tougher time in the next two, saving two set points in the tiebreaker before winning 6-1, 7-5, 7-6 (6) on Margaret Court Arena. After making way for Williams on the main court, he noted it was his first match on Melbourne Park's No. 2 court since it was renovated to include a roof.
Djokovic, a five-time Australian Open champion, continued a streak of reaching at least the fourth round at every major since the 2009 French Open. He was also particularly wary of a third-rounder against Seppi, who beat four-time champion Federer at the same stage here last year.
"I played a quality player who took out Federer last year here and who has been on the tour for many years," he said. "It was a great test. It was a physical match. I'm just glad I got through."
Also advancing were two-time semifinalist Tomas Berdych, who beat No. 29 Nick Kyrgios in four sets, and 2014 U.S. Open finalist Kei Nishikori, who had had a 7-5, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over No. 26-seeded Guillermo Garcia-Lopez and will next play 2008 Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Marin Cilic, the 2014 U.S. Open champion, lost to No. 24 Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 7-6 (5), 7-5.
No. 15 David Goffin beat No. 19 Dominic Thiem 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (2), 7-5 — his first win against a top-20 player at a Grand Slam. He faces a tougher proposition next: Federer.
The 17-time major winner now is 67 clear of No. 2 Jimmy Connors in Grand Slam singles wins, though Federer's main aim is to win his first major since Wimbledon 2012.
He improved to 5-0 against Dimitrov, a young Bulgarian with a similar style.
Dimitrov needed treatment for an undisclosed ailment at times, but Federer didn't cut him any slack — he lost in the third round here last year, his worst run at Melbourne Park since 2001.
"You're aware of it — I'm a veteran so I," don't get distracted, Federer said. "I've been fooled too many times when I was a teenager. I hope he's OK."
Earlier in a rain-interrupted day at Melbourne Park, 2008 champion Maria Sharapova collected her 600th win at tour level.
She advanced with a 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-0 win over Lauren Davis before she was reminded of the milestone, becoming the 17th woman to reach the mark.
"Wow. I've won 600 matches?" Sharapova said. "I think it's a proud number."
The fifth-seeded Sharapova will next play No. 12 Belinda Bencic, who had a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 win over Kateryna Bondarenko.
Roberta Vinci, who ended Williams' bid for a calendar-year Grand Slam in 2015 with a shocking semifinal win at the U.S. Open, lost 0-6, 6-4, 6-4 to Anna-Lena Friedsam, who will next face No. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska .
Also progressing were No. 10 Carla Suarez Navarro and Russian-born Australian Daria Gavrilova, who held off No. 28 Kristina Mladenovic 6-4, 4-6, 11-9.