MELBOURNE (Reuters)

Highlights of the sixth day of the Australian Open on Friday (all times GMT):

1355 DRAPER EDGES VUKIC

British 15th seed Jack Draper had to dig deep to beat local favourite Aleksandar Vukic 6-4 2-6 5-7 7-6(5) 7-6(8) in the third round to set up a clash with Spanish third seed Carlos Alcaraz.

1229 DANILOVIC STUNS PEGULA

Serbia’s Olga Danilovic, ranked 55th in the world, stunned American seventh seed Jessica Pegula, beating her 7-6(3) 6-1 to set up a fourth-round clash with Spanish 11th seed Paula Badosa.

1041 HUMBERT THROUGH AS FILS RETIRES

French 20th seed Arthur Fils retired during his third-round clash with fellow Frenchman and 14th seed Ugo Humbert due to an ankle injury he picked up during the match.

Humbert was leading two sets to one, with the score poised at 4-6 7-5 6-4 1-0. He will face German second seed Alexander Zverev in the fourth round.

1038 DJOKOVIC EASES PAST MACHAC

Seventh seed Novak Djokovic stayed on course for a record 11th Australian Open title with a 6-1 6-4 6-4 win over Czech 26th seed Tomas Machac in the third round.

Serbian Djokovic will face 24th seed Jiri Lehecka, also from Czech Republic, in the fourth round.

0932 GAUFF DUMPS OUT FERNANDEZ IN STRAIGHT SETS

American third seed Coco Gauff made light work of Leylah Fernandez, beating the Canadian 30th seed 6-4 6-2 on Margaret Court Arena.

0808 DAVIDOVICH FOKINA ENDS TEEN MENSIK’S RUN

Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina battled from two sets down to beat Czech 19-year-old Jakub Mensik 3-6 4-6 7-6(7) 6-4 6-2 and progress into the fourth round for the first time in his career.

Mensik had stunned Norwegian sixth seed Casper Ruud in the second round.

0712 OSAKA RETIRES, BENCIC ADVANCES

Twice champion Naomi Osaka was forced to retire due to an injury while trailing 7-6(3) in the third round against Swiss Belinda Bencic.

“At this moment I really feel for Naomi. I saw her struggling a bit at the end of the set. It’s not the way you would like the match to end… Hopefully she’ll be fine soon and can play well for the rest of the season,” Bencic said.

Bencic will next face either American third seed Coco Gauff or Canadian 30th seed Leylah Fernandez.

0610 ALCARAZ MARCHES ON

Spanish third seed Carlos Alcaraz advanced after beating Portuguese Nuno Borges 6-2 6-4 6-7(3) 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena.

0604 ZVEREV STEAMS INTO FOURTH ROUND

German second seed Alexander Zverev secured a comprehensive 6-3 6-4 6-4 victory over Briton Jacob Fearnley on Margaret Court Arena.

Zverev will next face either Ugo Humbert and Arthur Fils.

0440 PAUL DEFEATS CARBALLES BAENA IN STRAIGHT SETS

American 12th seed Tommy Paul won the last 10 games of the match to crush Spain’s Roberto Carballes Baena 7-6(0) 6-2 6-0 and progress to the fourth round.

0417 BADOSA OVERCOMES KOSTYUK

Spain’s 11th seed Paula Badosa overcame a second-set wobble to beat Marta Kostyuk 6-4 4-6 6-3 in gusty conditions and move into the fourth round.

Badosa found herself 5-0 down in the second set and lost her cool during a changeover, but her partner Stefanos Tsitsipas calmed her down with some advice from the stands.

“I appreciate his support, I think he was more nervous than me,” she said with a laugh.

0340 VEKIC TRIUMPHS OVER SHNAIDER IN THREE-HOUR BATTLE

Donna Vekic beat Diana Shnaider 7-6(4) 6-7(3) 7-5 in an evenly-matched battle of seeded players during a third-round match that lasted nearly three hours.

Olympic silver medallist Vekic is the lower seed (18) but with little to separate the two, one break point in the final set made all the difference against the 12th seed.

0251 SABALENKA ADVANCES AT TAUSON’S EXPENSE

Top seed and defending champion Aryna Sabalenka advanced to the fourth round after beating Denmark’s Clara Tauson 7-6(5) 6-4 in a see-saw encounter.

Sabalenka fought back from 5-3 down in the opening set while the Belarusian also struggled to convert break points (6/17).

“That was a great battle, she played unbelievable tennis,” Sabalenka said.

0148 PAVLYUCHENKOVA THROUGH TO FOURTH ROUND

Russian 27th seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova beat Germany’s Laura Siegemund 6-1 6-2 to move into the fourth round.

At 36, Siegemund was the oldest player remaining in the women’s draw and had knocked out last year’s runner-up and Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen.

0013 PLAY BEGINS AT MELBOURNE PARK

Play began on schedule on the sixth day of the Australian Open at Melbourne Park with the temperature at around 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit).

Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka will feature on Rod Laver Arena in her third round clash against Denmark’s Clara Tauson and four-times Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka takes on Belinda Bencic.

Carlos Alcaraz plays Portugal’s Nuno Borges before 10-times Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic faces Tomas Machac in the evening session.