Blake set to face Federer; Venus vs. Ivanovic in quarters

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Roger Federer sure didn't want to put in another 4½ hours.

So he made fast work of Tomas Berdych 6-4, 7-6 (9-7), 6-3 Monday to continue his march to a third consecutive Australian Open title and narrow his pursuit of Pete Sampras' record 14 Grand Slam titles.

"It throws off your rhythm a little bit, playing a five-setter," said top-ranked Federer, who barely avoided being an upset victim in the previous round, when he survived a 10-8 final set against Janko Tipsarevic.

"I like this one today better," he said after reaching the quarterfinals. "I'm quite pleased with the result, pulling up from a tough match."

Federer next faces American James Blake, a 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 winner over 19-year-old Croatian Marin Cilic, advancing past the fourth round here for the first time and matching his best Grand Slam showing.

Fifth-seeded David Ferrer, who lost to Federer in the Masters Cup final in November, beat fellow Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-5, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1. He will play third-ranked Novak Djokovic, who ousted the last Australian hope when he defeated No. 19 Lleyton Hewitt 7-5, 6-3, 6-3.

Hewitt didn't have his usual high energy level after beating Marcos Baghdatis in five sets in his previous match, which didn't end until 4:33 a.m. Sunday. That match was delayed by the length of Federer's victory over Tipsarevic.

Beware James Blake, this is what awaits you next. (AP)

She next faces No. 4 Ana Ivanovic, who put together a 6-1, 7-6 (7-2) win over Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki. No. 8 Daniela Hantuchova beat No. 27 Maria Kirilenko 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 and will next play Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska, who upset No. 14 Nadia Petrova 1-6, 7-5, 6-0.

Under pressure, Federer played his best while Berdych faltered.

Berdych, with a strong serve and sharp groundstrokes, had a tendency for poorly executed drop shots at critical times. He dumped one into the net while getting broken for the only time in the first set while serving at 4-4, then again while serving at 6-5 in the second-set tiebreaker after Federer rallied from 2-5.

Berdych squandered a second set point at 7-6 when he flailed a forehand long off an easy short ball, and Federer ran off the last three points.

Always a great front-runner, Federer got an early break in the third set, then held the rest of the way, dropping only four points in his five service games.