Novak Djokovic soaked up the pressure from a willing Daniil Medvedev on Monday before crushing the young Russian 6-4 6-7(5) 6-2 6-3 at the Rod Laver Arena.
The victory meant the Serb struck back for the old guard at the Australian Open to reach his 10th quarter-final at Melbourne Park.
The night after Roger Federer was stunned by Greek tyro, Stefanos Tsitsipas, there was another sniff of an upset as 22-year-old Medvedev rocked Djokovic with a furious assault of power hitting.
Yet the Russian wearied in the constant attrition, and top seed Djokovic cruised to victory, having passed easily his biggest test at the tournament.
The world number one will therefore continue his bid for a hat-trick of Grand Slam titles and a record seventh at Melbourne Park against eighth seed Kei Nishikori.
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