MELBOURNE, Australia, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Defending champions Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka cruised through to the fourth round after effortless victories on Friday as the Australian Open returned to normalcy.
After a dramatic day five finished at 3:40 a.m. local time, a number of top-ranked players hardly broke a sweat in their third-round matches at Melbourne Park.
Top seed Djokovic had stuttered in four-set victories in the two previous rounds, but was in vintage form at times to dismantle 30th seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry 6-3, 6-3, 7-6 (2).
The 10-time tournament winner had 34 winners and overcame an improved effort from the Argentinian in the third set to claim victory in two hours and 28 minutes.
Fourth seed Jannik Sinner underlined his title credentials with a 6-0, 6-1, 6-3 victory over 26th seed Sebastian Baez in just one hour and 52 minutes.
Unlike other contenders during an unpredictable tournament so far, Sinner has barely been pushed having not dropped a set in his opening three matches.
The 22-year-old Italian dictated from the baseline to hit 34 winners and he will play 15th seed Karen Khachanov of Russia in the last 16.
"I think I played really well and I feel great here," Sinner said. "I'm really happy how I'm feeling right now."
Seventh seed Stefanos Tsitsipas was similarly ruthless with a 6-3, 6-0, 6-4 masterclass over France's Luca Van Assche.
Having dropped a set in each of his first two matches, Tsitsipas continued his march towards a drought-breaking Grand Slam title. The Greek is hoping to go one better than his runner-up finish in Melbourne last year, but he will first have to get through a challenging fourth round clash against 12th seed Taylor Fritz.
"I felt like I had a poor start in both [previous] matches and felt like I wanted something different this time," Tsitsipas said. "It's not easy always having to fight back and show your best tennis in the second set.
"I wanted to go out here today and show that passion and determination from the very beginning and I'm happy that things worked out."
Women's second seed Sabalenka obliterated 28th seed Lesia Tsurenko 6-0, 6-0 in her latest dominant performance. She has dropped just six games in three matches at the tournament so far.
After clinching her 10th straight victory in Melbourne, Sabalenka is on path to become the first woman to retain the title since Victoria Azarenka in 2013.
But Sabalenka will next be pitted against nemesis Amanda Anisimova, who has won four of their five career meetings. The American is playing her first Grand Slam since taking an eight-month mental health break.
"First of all, I'm happy that [Anisimova is] back on tour," Sabalenka said. "We had a lot of great matches against each other, always tough battles."
U.S. Open champion Coco Gauff eased into the fourth round for the third time in Melbourne after sweeping past Alycia Parks 6-0, 6-2 in 61 minutes.
The 19-year-old continued to send an ominous warning to competitors after winning her eighth straight match of the season. The American dictated against her compatriot and childhood friend Parks, whose powerful groundstrokes failed to fire.
"I'm really happy with how I played today," Gauff said. "I've known her since I was nine or eight years old, probably even younger than that.
"Our first time ever playing, juniors or pros [against each other] so hopefully we can have many more matches in the future."
World No. 1 Iga Swiatek will headline round three action on Saturday, while China's top-ranked player Zheng Qinwen plays compatriot Wang Yafan.
Men's second seed Carlos Alcaraz faces Chinese rising star Shang Juncheng. ■
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