Melbourne [Australia], Jan 18 (ANI): Swiss tennis maestro Roger Federer on Friday entered the pre-quarters round of the ongoing Australian Open after defeating Taylor Fritz of America in the third round of the men's singles event.

The 37-year-old registered a comprehensive 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 win over his American counterpart in a clash that lasted less than 90 minutes.

The defending champion dropped only three first-serve points and won more than half of his break points to completely dominate the clash. Fritz, on the other hand, never seemed to be on the top as he won no break point in the match.

The twenty times Grand Slam champion smashed 11 aces in the match and won 57 serving points to strengthen his grip on the clash.

After the match, Federer admitted that he was aware of the threat that Fritz could be, adding that it was good to win against a player who could be dangerous in the future.

"I think I wanted to get out of the blocks quickly because I knew of the threat of Taylor, his possibilities of the serve. I think I had a really good feeling out here today against someone who can definitely be very dangerous in the future, and I wish him all the best in the future," ATP quoted Federer, as saying.

Up next, Federer will take on Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece to cement a spot in the quarter-final of the Australian Open.

Later in the day, world number two Rafael Nadal will square off with Alex de Minaur of Australia to advance into the fourth round of the tournament.

In the women's singles event, American tennis ace Serena Williams reached the third round of the competition after thrashing Eugenie Bouchard of Canada 6-2, 6-1 in their second-round clash on Thursday. (ANI)

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