Federer sweeps aside Agassi

MELBOURNE, Australia -- In a matchup worthy of a final, defending champion Roger Federer was graceful and at his relentless best in beating four-time winner Andre Agassi 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 on Tuesday to advance to the semifinals of the Australian Open.

The top-ranked Federer extended his winning streak to 26 matches with a dazzling array of stinging winners from the baseline, crisp volleys and 22 aces that often left the quick Agassi flat-footed and the sellout crowd applauding.

"He just outplayed me," Agassi said. "He was too good. I would suggest to his next opponent that he doesn't look to me for advice."

Agassi, 34, never could find a weakness to attack.

"I wanted tonight to be memorable. But it's one I'd probably prefer to forget," Agassi said. "I never got my teeth into it. And when I don't get my teeth into a match, I can look pretty ordinary."

Playing earlier under a broiling sun that led tournament officials to close the roofs on the two show courts after their matches, fourth-seeded Maria Sharapova and No. 7 Serena Williams won Tuesday to set up a semifinal showdown. Williams defeated No. 2 Amelie Mauresmo 6-2, 6-2, while Sharapova beat U.S. Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova 4-6, 6-2, 6-2. Top-ranked Lindsay Davenport also advanced, overcoming local hope Alicia Molik 6-4, 4-6, 9-7.