Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic both made light work of a pair of Australian upstarts to book their places in the French Open last-16.
No 3 seed Murray, unbeaten on clay this year, cruised to a 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 victory over Nick Kyrgios before top seed and tournament favourite Djokovic efficiently dispatched Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-4 6-4 6-4.
Kyrgios, the 29th seed and bidding to add a first French Open last-16 place to his runs to the 2014 Wimbledon and 2015 Australian Open quarter-finals, wasn’t helped by requiring a medical timeout for an injury to his right arm late in the second set.
Murray, who fired 12 aces and 45 winners while Kyrgios was undone by 37 unforced errors, goes on to face either Belgian 17th seed David Goffin or unseeded Frenchman Jeremy Chardy for a place in the quarter-finals.
It was Murray’s third successive win over Kyrgios, all without dropping a set, as he took his record on clay this year to 13-0.
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“It was a tough match. Nick really goes for the big shots,” Murray said.
“But I used variety and slice, tried to mix it up to break his rhythm and it seemed to work.
“He wasn’t helped by struggling with his arm injury.”
After a tight first set, Murray carved out a double break in the second to put himself firmly in the driving seat, his overall court craft and angles exploiting the weaknesses of his opponent.
Despite his bandaged right forearm, Kyrgios broke for a 2-1 lead in the third before surrendering the advantage in the next game.
His frustration caused him to launch a ball out of Court Suzanne Lenglen which led to a warning for a code violation.
Finishing up shortly after, Djokovic continued his smooth progression towards a maiden French Open title by dismissing Kokkinakis.
The world number one from Serbia showed no ill effects from a groin problem he faced during his previous match, ending the tennis lesson on his first match point when teenager Kokkinakis returned a first serve wide.
Kokkinakis had moments of brilliance on court Philippe Chatrier, sometimes bothering Djokovic with his booming forehand, but he never got into his opponent’s serve.
Djokovic, who did not face a single break point, will next face either local favourite Richard Gasquet, the 20th seed, or South African 15th seed Kevin Anderson.
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