France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga reaches for a return to compatriot Richard Gasquet during their fourth round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, Jan. 21, 2013. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
MELBOURNE — Seventh-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga stayed on track for a potential quarterfinal with Roger Federer when he beat fellow Frenchman Richard Gasquet 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in a fourth-round match Monday at the Australian Open.
Tsonga, who lost the 2008 Australian Open final to Novak Djokovic, would meet Federer in the final eight if the 17-time Grand Slam singles winner beats Milos Raonic of Canada in a fourth-round match later Monday at Rod Laver Arena.
Although Tsonga and Gasquet have met twice before at a Grand Slam, including here in 2008, it was the first time in the Open era that two Frenchmen ranked in the top 10 have played each other at a major. Their career record is now even at 4-4.