Reigning champion Roger Federer fires past Richard Gasquet

ByEurosport

Updated 20/01/2018 at 13:51 GMT

Number two seed Roger Federer continued his serene progress at the Australian Open with a 6-2 7-5 6-4 win over Richard Gasquet in the third round.

Federer is yet to drop a set as he continues his title defence at Melbourne Park and the 36-year-old never looked unduly troubled against the Frenchman, winning in 1hr 15mins.

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There were some flashy exchanges between two of the most stylish one-handed backhanders in the game, but Federer was no match for the 29th seed as he took full control on Rod Laver Arena.

Federer had a minor wobble at 4-2 in the third set when Gasquet carved out his first break point of the entire match, and then took the Federer serve.

But Federer sensed a chance at 5-4 and broke Gasquet again to seal the win, with two magnificent backhands ending the match.

Flashy backhand gives Federer victory over Gasquet

"The match was close, tough games, the end could have gone to a tiebreaker then you never know," Federer said on court.

"I was able to be a bit more on the offensive than he was, maybe I was protecting my second serve a bit better than him."

"My expectations are a little different because I had a great season last year," he added.

"I'm coming in this year well-equipped, fully fit, I know that five sets is not an issue this year, while last year that was a bit of a question mark."

He will next face his first career meeting with Hungarian Marton Fucsovics for a place in the quarter-finals.

"He came to train with me in Switzerland last year," said Federer. "He was great, super nice guy, hard-working, he's a great baseliner, really strong, so I'm happy I know him a little bit."

The Swiss goes on to face Marton Fucsovics in the fourth round, the world no. 80.

Additional reporting from Reuters.

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