The first spots in the semifinals were filled on Tuesday with the favorites finding success in the early matches.

Serena Defeats Sharapova Once Again

Serena Williams came into her quarterfinal match against Maria Sharapova having won the last 17 meetings dating back to 2004. That became 18 after a 6-4 6-1 victory on Tuesday.

Early, it was Sharapova gaining an advantage with a quick break of serve as she played with a definite edge to her game.  But after the Russian took the first two games, Williams found her groove and took the next three. It appeared that Williams would position herself to take the set in the eighth game, but trailing 0-40, the Russian would win the next five points to stay on serve. Then, with Sharapova serving to stay in the set at 4-5, the two heavy hitters slugged it out as Williams attempted to break through. Some tremendous points were the result, but the athleticism of the American arose at key times, and she would gain a service break to take the set. Sharapova was undermined by some untimely double faults during the set.

In the second set, it was a script far too familiar to the fifth seed as Williams quickly captured all of the momentum and completely dictated points, using her athletic ability to her advantage. Sharapova did not help herself with a poor serving performance, including seven double faults and only a 55 percent first-serve percentage. With the victory, Williams moves back into another grand slam semifinal where she will face Agnieszka Radwanska.

Federer Advances Past Berdych

It was a solid performance by the third-seeded Roger Federer in Rod Laver Arena as he defeated Tomas Berdych in straight sets, 7-6 6-2 6-4.

A confident Berdych was the first to gain momentum after he took an early break against the Federer serve. But that lead did not last long as the 34-year-old quickly evened the match. It was a set in which both players found quality shots from a number of locations on the court. With neither gaining a further advantage, the set went to a tiebreak. And there Federer would take his game a step higher, painting lines with powerful groundstrokes. While Berdych struck his share in return, it was not enough to offset the shot-making of the Swiss, who took the set.

Federer was a maestro on the court in the second set, crafting points expertly and releasing several sharpshooter passing shots. He would control the set without incident and take a commanding lead in the match.

Despite a large deficit, the Czech showed some signs of life in the third set, gaining a quick break of the Federer serve. However, the lead lasted only a short time, and while Federer enjoyed relatively easy service games, Berdych was forced to fight to hold his. This caught up to him in the ninth game when Federer broke through and then closed the match on his racket. The 17-time major champion has won the Australian Open four times, most recently in 2010. He is playing at a level that certainly gives him a shot at number five.

Radwanska Rolls to the Semifinals

Agnieszka Radwanska has found success at the Australian Open in the past, having advanced to the semifinals in 2014. Playing high-quality tennis over the last several months, she looked to find her way back to the final four once again. That became a reality after a 6-1 6-3 win over Carla Suarez Navarro.

Continuing her solid play, Radwanska began quickly by breaking Suarez Navarro twice and running out to a 4-0 lead in the first set. The court-savvy Pole, who uses shot placement over power, crafted points with precise shots and lured the Spaniard into 18 unforced errors in the first set. Suarez Navarro would finally elevate her play with more confident shots, but it was too late in a set that went to Radwanska.

It was more of the same in the second set as the No. 4 seed struck a variety of clever shots, seizing control early. However, Suarez Navarro would not go without a fight. In the sixth game, the 10th seed fought tooth and nail as she faced a series of break opportunities for Radwanska. She would hold serve but was unable to stop the inevitable in her next service game, and Radwanska would close out the match. Suarez Navarro could not overcome 45 unforced errors.