Novak Djokovic continued his charge at the Australian Open by overcoming Andreas Seppi 6-1 7-5 7-6(6) in the third round of the tournament in Melbourne on Friday.
The defending champion had a comfortable first set as he swiftly earned a double break before taking the lead Down Under in just 26 minutes.
The second set was more challenging for the world number one as Seppi, who knocked out Roger Federer in the third round last year, held his serve strongly.
Djokovic eventually found the breakthrough to give himself a two-set lead but his Italian opponent continued to be stubborn on the court.
Just two break points were created in 12 games of the third set and both were made by Seppi, but he failed to take them, resulting in a tie-break.
It was a close contest but Djokovic did just enough to take the breaker 8-6 and move into the fourth round for a 10th straight year.
Danielle Joynson
