Kei Nishikori of Japan booked his place in the Australian Open 2013 fourth round after cruising past Evgeny Donskoy 7-9, 6-2, 6-3. Nishikori has reached this stage for the second straight year. A year ago, he reached the quarterfinals.
“I think I played well in important games,” he said.
“It wasn’t easy to play today with the wind. [In] the last couple games, I played really well and [was] more confident in my play. So I think I’m in good shape,” he added.
The 16th seed will next face fourth seed David Ferrer of Spain in the next round. Ferrer, enjoying a perfect season so far, defeated former finalist Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus 6-4, 6-2, 6-3.
