Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev reach Australian Open last 16

Top-10 stars Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev are through to the last 16 in Melbourne, beating Filip Krajinovic and Feliciano Lopez in a different way to remain on the title course.

Medvedev earned the 17th straight victory following a hard-fought 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 3-6, 6-0 triumph over Filip Krajinovic in three hours and six minutes. The Russian suffered three breaks to keep Krajinovic in contention, struggling to hold emotions and experiencing an argument with his coach, who left the court to let him alone, correctly believing he would deliver a strong performance in the decider.

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Hitting 52 winners and 44 unforced errors, Daniil controlled the pace in the sets he won, building a massive lead before sealing the deal with reliable performance in the final set. Thus, the Russian will compete in the Australian Open fourth round for the third straight year, hoping to reach the first quarter-final.

Krajinovic saved three break points at 4-4 in set number three to gain momentum, stealing the Russian's serve in the tenth game to grab the set and producing one break in set number four to force a decider. Starting all over, Daniil won all six games to deliver a bagel and sail into the fourth round, where he plays against Mackenzie McDonald.

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Andrey Rublev is yet to suffer a defeat in 2021, beating Feliciano Lopez 7-5, 6-2, 6-3 in an hour and 32 minutes. The youngster lost only 15 points behind the initial shot and never dropped serve, mounting the pressure on the other side and earning four breaks to move over the top against his good friend. Rublev had 33 winners and 23 unforced errors, overpowering the veteran in both the shortest and more extended exchanges to seal the deal in straight sets and advance into the last 16 for the second consecutive year in Melbourne.

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