MELBOURNE, Australia — Rafael Nadal’s right knee was taped. Ditto for his left ankle. His strokes looked just fine.
Nadal cruised past countryman Feliciano Lopez today, winning 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.
Nadal, who hurt his knee while sitting in a chair the day before the tournament began, is one win away from a possible semifinal against old rival Roger Federer after beating his fellow Spaniard for the ninth time in 11 matches.
Federer was up against 19-year-old Australian Bernard Tomic in the first match of the night session later. The 16-time Grand Slam champion hasn’t lost to a teenager since 2006 against Andy Murray at the Cincinnati Masters.
Also today, Victoria Azarenka was the first player to reach the quarterfinals when she beat Iveta Benesova 6-2, 6-2.
The third-seeded Belarusian is yet to drop a set at the tournament and will next meet eighth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska, who beat Julia Goerges of Germany 6-1, 6-1.
With the win, 22-year-old Azarenka stayed in the hunt for the No. 1 ranking. Petra Kvitova and Maria Sharapova can also claim the top spot from Caroline Wozniacki.
“I would be a liar if I said I didn’t care about it,” Azarenka said. “It’s in the back of my head and we’ll take it day by day, I guess.”
Azarenka, like Wozniacki, is aiming for her first Grand Slam title. She has never gone past the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, but is 6-3 against Radwanska.
On Saturday, Serema Williams routed Greta Arn 6-1, 6-1 for her 17th straight win at the Australian Open.
On the men’s side, No. 1-ranked Novak Djokovic routed Nicolas Mahut 6-0, 6-1, 6-1 in 1 hour, 14 minutes to give the Frenchman a lousy 30th birthday present
Other men advancing on Saturday included Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Murray and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
