Federer, Nadal storm into quarters

INDIAN WELLS: Former champions Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal edged closer to a blockbuster semi-final showdown at the ATP Indian Wells Masters on Wednesday with brisk fourthround wins.

World No 2 Nadal overpowered Serbian qualifier Filip Krajinovic 6-3, 6-4 to book his quarter-final berth in one hour and 26 minutes.

Federer, seeking a record sixth title in the California desert, needed just 64 minutes to get past Britain’s Kyle Edmund 6-1, 6-4.

Nadalwill take on next 13thranked Russian Karen Khachanov, who beat World No 9 John Isner 6-4, 7-6 (7-1).

Fourth-seeded Federer, fresh off his 100th career title, looked poised to finish off Edmund in less than an hour.

But the Swiss great had to fight off three break points as he served for the match, just a small speed bump in a match that he took charge of early.

Federer will fight for a semifinal berth against 22-year-old Pole Hubert Hurkacz.

Hurkacz, ranked 67th in the world, sent 25th-ranked Canadian Denis Shapovalov packing 7-6 (7-3), 2-6, 6-3.

A day after World No 1 Novak Djokovic tumbled out of the third round, 19-year-old Miomir Kecmanovic kept the Serbian flag flying.

Kecmanovic became the first lucky loser to reach the last eight at Indian Wells since the ATP’s Masters 1000 series launched in 1990.

Kecmanovic, ranked 130th in the world, had taken the first set against Yoshihito Nishioka 6-4 when the 74th-ranked Japanese retired because of injury.

Kecmanovic, who gained entry to the second round when fifthseeded Kevin Anderson withdrew with an elbow injury, is in his first ATP quarter-final.

Kecmanovic is the last teen left in the men’s draw, after the departure of 19-year-old Shapovalov.

At the other end of the age spectrum, 40-year-old Croatian Ivo Karlovic’s run came to an end with a 6-4, 6-3 loss to 25year-old seventh seed Dominic Thiem.

Thiem booked a meeting with 18th-seeded Gael Monfils of France, who defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-0, 6-2 in 57 minutes a day after the German stunned World No 1 Novak Djokovic in the third round.

In the women’s matches Bianca Andreescu's breakout season continued Wednesday as the Canadian teenager swept past two-time Grand Slam champion Garbine Muguruza and into the Indian Wells WTA semi-finals.

Bianca, 18 and ranked 60th in the world, won the first nine games on the way to a 6-0, 6-1 victory that took just 52 minutes.

Bianca will get a shot at another top-10 player in the semi-finals, after sixth-ranked Elina Svitolina clawed out a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory over another red-hot teen — Marketa Vondrousova of Czech Republic.