MELBOURNE, Australia — Andy Murray moved another step closer to consecutive Australian Open finals, routing Guillermo Garcia Lopez 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 today in the third round of the year’s first major.
The fifth-seeded Murray, who lost the 2010 final to Roger Federer, has dropped just 17 games through three rounds.
Another former finalist was ousted, as 2008 runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France lost 3-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, 6-1 to Alexandr Dolgopolov.
Milos Raonic, a 20-year-old Canadian qualifier with the fastest serve in the tournament’s first two rounds at 143 mph, fired 32 aces while pushing aside No. 10 Mikhail Youzhny with a 6-4, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4 win.
No. 4 Robin Soderling, who beat Jan Hernych 6-3, 6-1, 6-4 and next plays Dolgopolov, hasn’t dropped a set and is on an eight-match winning streak with his three at Melbourne Park after winning the tuneup tournament at Brisbane. He’s lost the last two French Open finals to Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, but has some big victories over the dominant duo and is confident both can be beaten at Melbourne Park.
“There’s always going to be a lot of attention on Roger and Rafa, of course,” he said. “But I think there’s many guys who can actually compete against them and have a chance to win the tournaments like this when they’re playing well.
“I already played two Grand Slam finals and I beat them both in Grand Slams. But, again, of course they will always be the favorites, and we are the guys who need to play really well if we’re going to have a chance to beat them.”
Soderling’s match was delayed for about 10 minutes in the third set when a bubble seemed to appear on the court surface at Hisense Arena. A similar bubble delayed the start of a match on the same court the previous night.
Tournament organizers said moisture from recent rains had gathered under the court’s Plexicushion layer in the unseasonably cool conditions and evaporated as temperatures rose, causing a pocket of vapor that lifted part of the surface. Stadium staff repaired the problem quickly both times.
Second-seeded Vera Zvonareva kept alive her bid for a third consecutive Grand Slam final with a 6-3, 7-6 (9) victory over Lucie Safarova.
Zvonareva served for the match twice but was extended to the tiebreaker. Safarova led 4-2 and 5-3 in the tiebreaker before Zvonareva finally sealed it on her fourth match point.
Seven-time major winner Venus Williams had played 251 Grand Slam matches and never once been forced to retire because of injury. It took all of four minutes Friday night for that streak to end against Andrea Petkovic, calling it quits because of a muscle injury in her hip.
