Tomas Berdych has booked his place in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open for the fourth successive year by recording a straight-sets win over Kevin Anderson.
© AFP
The world number seven dispatched his South African counterpart within two hours of play to set up a last-eight clash with Spain's David Ferrer.
Nothing could separate the duo after the opening four games of the first set, but Berdych broke Anderson's serve twice to move into a 4-2 lead before claiming two more games to secure an early 6-2 advantage .
Another two breaks of serve in the second set for the Czech allowed the 28-year-old to take control of the encounter by establishing daylight in the scoreline with another 6-2 win.
Berdych brought an end to proceedings after just 34 minutes in the third and final set by cruising to a 6-3 victory to maintain his impressive form in the Melbourne-based tournament.
Shane Callaghan
