Tennis

2014 Australian Open results and bracket: Federer, Nadal, Sharapova advance

Caroline Wozniacki and Milos Raonic were the highest seeds to fall on Day 6.

Jan 18, 2014, 6:42 PM UTC

Cameron Spencer

Several of the 2014 Australian Open’s major contenders were in action in the third round during Day 6 of the Australian Open, and, as has been the case so far in the year’s first major, none of them stumbled.

Top seed Rafael Nadal barely broke a sweat in dispatching No. 25 Gael Monfils, 6-1, 6-2, 6-3. Nadal is trying to become just the second player in the Open era (after Rod Laver) to win all four Grand Slams at least twice, and he’s looked as good as anyone in the field so far.

Andy Murray, who said it would be “unrealistic to expect to win” this tournament, also won in straight sets over 26th-seeded Feliciano Lopez. Roger Federer continued his splendid play with a 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 win over Teymuraz Gabashvili on Rod Laver Arena.

Juan Martin del Potro is the only top 10 seed to have lost on either side of the draw so far, but the men’s No. 11 seed, Canadian Milos Raonic, fell to No. 22 Grigor Dimitrov, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 7-6. No. 10 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga took out his countryman, No. 18 Gilles Simon, 7-6, 6-4, 6-2.

On the women’s side, it was the same story. The highest seed to lose in Day 6 action was No. 10 Caroline Wozniacki. The former world No. 1 fell in three sets to 20-year-old Spaniard Garbine Muguruza Blanco. No. 2 Victoria Azarenka and No. 3 Maria Sharapova each advanced in straight sets -- Sharapova over No. 25 Alize Cornet and Azarenka 6-1, 6-0 over Yvonne Meusburger.

American Sloane Stephens, the 13th seed, also advanced in straight sets, 7-5, 6-4 over Elina Svitolina. The only other American in singles action was unseeded former phenom Donald Young, who fell in three sets to Kei Nishikori, 7-5, 6-1, 6-0. Bob and Mike Bryan, the perennial No. 1 seeded men’s doubles team, also made it to the fourth round with a straight sets victory over Robin Haase and Christopher Kas, 6-3, 6-2.