Roger Federer climbed into rarefied territory on a rainy Friday at the Australian Open. With a 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 third-round win over 27^th seed Grigor Dimitrov in Rod Laver Arena, the No. 3 seed clinched the 300th Grand Slam match win of his storied career, becoming the first man to reach the milestone.

Only Martina Navratilova (306) stands in front of him.

The 48-minute first set went in Federer’s favour behind a service break at 3-all, the only interruption the opening, then closing, of Rod Laver Arena’s retractable roof due to rain. But the Bulgarian Dimitrov, who after three straight-sets losses took his first set off Federer in the Brisbane quarter-finals earlier this month, would get another to level the match at a set apiece, his aggressive play paying dividends against the 17-time Slam champ.

Federer didn’t wait long to assert himself in the third set, breaks coming in the second and sixth games for a 5-1 advantage. A game later he was ahead two sets to one. A forehand error from Dimitrov at 2-all, 30/40 in the fourth and final set would give Federer a seemingly insurmountable lead, and the Swiss went on to clinch the contest in two hours and 40 minutes. He finished with 47 winners, including 13 aces.

It was Dimitrov’s  seventh straight loss to a Top-10 player.

Federer, at 34 a decade Dimitrov’s senior, is the oldest man to reach the round of 16 at the Australian Open since Andre Agassi played his way into the quarter-finals in 2005. He is looking to become only the third man to win five Australian Open singles titles after Roy Emerson (six) and Novak Djokovic (five), having won the title in 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2010.

Dimitrov was bidding to reach the fourth round for the third consecutive year. His best Australian Open result is a quarter-finals showing in 2014 (l. to Rafael Nadal).

Federer advances to play No. 15 seed David Goffin of Belgium, a 6-1, 3-6, 7-6(2), 7-5 winner over No. 19 seed Dominic Thiem of Austria. The 25-year-old Goffin is through to the fourth round of a major for the third time, having also reached the last 16 at 2012 Roland Garros (as a qualifier) and 2015 Wimbledon. The right-hander will look to overturn a 0-3 FedEx ATP Head2Head record over Federer.

Federer Grand Slam Milestone Wins

Despite his runner-up finish at the 2014 US Open, the Australian Open remains Kei Nishikori’s most successful Grand Slam. The two-time quarter-finalist improved to 19-6 in Melbourne Park on Friday, advancing to the round of 16 for the fifth straight year with a 7-5, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain.

A break in hand, the 26^th-seeded Garcia-Lopez, who came into the match with a 0-2 deficit in FedEx ATP Head2Head encounters with Nishikori, had a chance to serve out the first set at 5-4. But after falling behind 15-40, he dumped a forehand into the net as his opponent brought the set back on serve. Two games later, Nishikori took the 46-minute set on yet another untimely error from Garcia-Lopez.

To the 32-year-old Spaniard’s credit, he didn’t let the missed opportunity drag him down. He came out firing in the second set and broke Nishikori in the first and fifth games to level the match at one set apiece. It was the first set he had taken from the top-ranked Japanese man in their three encounters.

Nishikori, 26, moved ahead two sets to one with a break at 3-2 in the third, and struck again at 1-all in the fourth to distance himself in the two-hour, 48-minute contest.

Nishikori advanced to the third round after defeating Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 in the first round, and Austin Krajicek 6-3, 7-6(5), 6-3 in the second round. This is his seventh Australian Open appearance. He reached the quarter-finals in 2012 (l. to Andy Murray) and in 2015 (l. to Stan Wawrinka).

Garcia-Lopez was bidding to reach the round of 16 here for the second straight year. He fell to 2-8 against Top-10 players at the majors.

The match was played under a closed Margaret Court Arena roof as rain prevented play on all but the three covered courts in Melbourne Park.

Nishikori, who won 16 of 24 (67%) net approaches and registered 33 winners to 38 unforced errors, will next face No. 9 seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Tsonga defeated Pierre Hughes-Herbert 6-4, 7-6(7), 7-6(4) in the first of two all-French third-round clashes. The 2008 Australian Open runner-up has now lost just one of 14 meetings with his countrymen at the majors. Nishikori owns a 4-2 edge in FedEx ATP Head2Head match-ups with the Frenchman.

Also advancing on Friday was No. 15 seed David Goffin, a 6-1, 3-6, 7-6(2), 7-5 winner over No. 19 seed Dominic Thiem of Austria. The Belgian Davis Cup hero registered 55 winners, 17 aces among them, to 61 unforced errors. He is just the fourth Belgian man to reach the last 16 in Melbourne. Olivier Rochus was the last to do so in 2005.

As Lleyton Hewitt stood on Rod Laver Arena after playing his final singles match, a video was played on the big screen with messages from Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray. The video ended with Nick Kyrgios, whom Hewitt has mentored in the past six months, declaring the two-time Grand Slam champion to still be the best player in Australia and suggesting he reconsider his retirement.

Naturally, it had to be asked in the press conference if the 34-year-old Hewitt was having any second thoughts about hanging up his racquets.

With his three children, Ava, Mia and Cruz seated beside him, Hewitt responded, “No, I’ve been set on it. I got the most out of my body. I’ve pushed myself to the limit. I look forward to the next phase in terms of work, helping these next guys coming through, including the likes of Nick.”

Indeed, it was very much a family affair as Hewitt bid a fond farewell to professional tennis on Thursday evening, bowing out in the Australian Open second round against David Ferrer. The Adelaide native was joined on court afterwards by his children, who had been watching with their mother, Bec, in the stands, and explained they had been a large part of why he had continued to play for as long as he did.

Read: Hewitt Bows Out

Read & Watch: Lleyton Hewitt – The Game Changer

“Especially the past few years, they’ve actually been able to come to tournaments and remember it,” said Hewitt. “They’re going to have lifelong memories of being out there with me and Cruz hitting with the likes of Federer, Nadal, Murray, these guys. It’s pretty cool.

“It’s probably pushed me to play that little bit longer to enjoy it so they could get something out of it, as well. Cruz, the past couple years, he came on a little boys trip to a couple of different tournaments. It’s been nice.”

Hewitt has spent the past 12 months building up to this moment, since announcing last year that his 20^th successive Australian Open would be his last tournament.

The right-hander may have only won four matches last year, but he has enjoyed a special farewell tour, which saw him lead Australia to the Davis Cup semi-finals – where he played a memorable doubles rubber alongside Sam Groth against the Murray brothers – and go out to great ovation at Wimbledon, the US Open and a special on-court ceremony at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.

His final bow fittingly came on Rod Laver Arena, where he has enjoyed some of the most momentous wins and biggest battles of his career – not least a semi-final victory over Andy Roddick in 2005.

“I’ve been very fortunate that I’ve had such a great career that I had the opportunity to go out on my terms,” said Hewitt. “A lot of great sporting athletes don’t have that opportunity. Especially if you play in a team environment where a coach makes a decision whether you’re going to play or not and sometimes where you finish your career.

“I actually had the ball in my court in a lot of ways to do that here at the Australian Open. I feel really pleased about that.

“It was an unbelievable atmosphere out there,” continued Hewitt, who brought the crowd to its feet on more than one occasion with a final flourish. “A couple of the roars during the match tonight were as loud as I’ve ever played in front of. I was getting goosebumps at times. Obviously just watching the video and hearing those great players talk about you in that light was pretty emotional.

“Especially when I got back in the locker room, I guess that hits you a little bit more then. When I’m with my close friends and coaching staff that have helped me so much out. It’s sort of a strange feeling because you’re obviously disappointed not to keep going, but obviously proud of everything we’ve done as well.”

The journey is not quite over for Hewitt. Before he fully assumes his role as Australia’s Davis Cup captain, there is at least one more match left to play: the men’s doubles second round with Sam Groth. The Australians play another homegrown player, John Peers, and his Finnish partner, Henri Kontinen, on Friday.

“I saw Grothy in the locker room and he was already asking about practice tomorrow and warming up tomorrow!” said Hewitt. So the retirement celebrations tonight won’t be too exuberant then? “No, I might have a quiet beer. That’s it.”

The curtain came down on Lleyton Hewitt’s illustrious career on Thursday night in Melbourne as David Ferrer defeated the former World No. 1 6-2, 6-4, 6-4 in the second round of the Australian Open. Hewitt was competing in his 20^th successive Australian Open.

As expected, the 34-year-old Hewitt left it all out on the court, but the No. 8-ranked Ferrer held off the Aussie’s challenge to claim victory in two hours and 32 minutes on Rod Laver Arena. Hewitt was watched from his box by his family, Tony Roche and Thanasi Kokkinakis among others.

“He was too good tonight,” Hewitt said in his on-court interview. “He’s a Top 8 player in the world, couple of times a semi-finalist here. He plays extremely well in these conditions and is at the top of his game at the moment.

“I came out and gave everything I had like always. I left nothing in the locker room. That’s something I can always be proud of. My whole career I’ve always given 100 per cent. I love coming out here and competing. It’s never hard to come out playing in front of such great spectators every time I play out here on Rod Laver Arena. It’s like a second home for me and I’m just so fortunate to have this opportunity 20 years in a row.

Read & Watch: Hewitt Takes Stock In Final Presser

“It’s a weird emotion; I don’t think it will fully set in for a couple of days’ time. As I’ve always said, I’m such a competitor, I try and push myself all the time to get the most out of myself. Obviously it was in the back of my mind coming into every match this week, but I have had a fantastic last month. I feel honoured to have this support and this love from these crowds. It means so much to me. I’ve had so much success and big matches on this court; I feel fortunate to finish here.”

The Adelaide native did not go down without a fight. Leading by a set, Ferrer was on the verge of taking a double-break lead in the second set. But Hewitt saved two break points in the seventh game and almost recouped the break in a marathon eighth game, which saw Ferrer save seven break points.

Hewitt finally broke the Ferrer serve in the sixth game of the third set, levelling up at 3-3, much to the delight of the fans. But it was to be his final hurrah, as Ferrer broke again in the following game before closing out victory. In their exchange at the net, Ferrer asked Hewitt if they could swap shirts after leaving the court. The Spaniard goes on to face Steve Johnson on Saturday.

Speaking to Jim Courier for the host broadcaster afterwards, Ferrer admitted, “I was nervous because it’s a different day. Finally I won the match, but if I’d lost, it might have been my last match! He gave a very good performance. He’s one of the best players in history. I have a shirt signed by him from seven years ago, the only shirt from another player I have in my house.

“It’s a sad day, because Lleyton is finishing his career. He’s an idol for me and an amazing player. In my career, tonight is going to be very special for me, playing in Lleyton’s last match. The match was tough. Lleyton fought until the last ball. He’s unbelievable. He deserves everything coming.”

Hewitt remains in the doubles at Melbourne Park, competing alongside Sam Groth.