Federer finds form in Melbourne with dismantling of Berdych

Roger Federer took care of his first real challenge of the Australian Open on Friday, though you'd be forgiven for wondering where the challenging element was supposed to come in.

Federer systematically took apart Tomas Berdych in the third round, beating the 10th-ranked Czech - who'd made at least the quarters in Melbourne the previous six years - 6-2, 6-4, 6-4 in a breezy 90 minutes.

It was a razor-sharp performance from the 35-year-old, a far cry from his sloppy, scattershot win over 20-year-old qualifier Noah Rubin in the second round, or his bumpy opener against 296th-ranked Jurgen Melzer. This time out, Federer was staggeringly precise, rifling line-clipping winners from both wings (his backhand was in especially fine form) while committing just 17 unforced errors across the three sets.

Berdych never even had the slightest opening, as his subpar returning and predictable second serve were laid bare by Federer's hawkish opportunism. The No. 17 seed lost two points on his first serve the entire match, and just 14 service points total. He did not face a break point. Meanwhile, he won 70 percent of points on Berdych's second serve and converted four of five break points.

He didn't even need to bull rush the net, as has become his late-career custom. He still won 20 of 23 points at net, but mostly he dominated from the baseline, changing the direction of the ball and dragging Berdych side to side. It was cool, clinical, and completely stress-free.

"I don't know," Federer said in his on-court interview, when asked if he expected to play as well as he did. "I didn't quite expect it to go this well. ... I did surprise myself."

"It's just crazy how quick I got out of the blocks," he said in later post-match press. "... From the baseline, honestly, I felt worlds better than in the first couple of rounds. So it's a big relief, but like I said at the beginning of the tournament, any result was going to be a good result for me."

Looking like himself again after the six-month hiatus following last year's Wimbledon, Federer is into the fourth round in Melbourne for the 15th time in the last 16 years. Things won't get any easier from here, as he next gets world No. 5 Kei Nishikori before a potential quarterfinal showdown with world No. 1 Andy Murray.