Jan. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Second-seeded Andy Roddick beat Philipp Kohlschreiber to reach the Australian Open quarterfinals for the third straight year.

Roddick, whose only Grand Slam tennis victory was at the 2003 U.S. Open, defeated his 102nd-ranked opponent 6-3, 7-6 (8- 6), 6-1 in 87 minutes at Melbourne Park.

Roddick will next play the winner of today's match between Guillermo Canas, the No. 12 seed, and 25th-ranked Nikolay Davydenko, who upset seventh-seeded Tim Henman. He faces a potential semifinal against local favorite Lleyton Hewitt.

Hewitt and Alicia Molik later resume their bids to end Australia's 27-year wait for a local champion, while top-ranked Lindsay Davenport faces No. 13 Karolina Sprem.

Third-seeded Hewitt takes on Spanish teenager Rafael Nadal in a repeat of last year's third-round encounter that Hewitt won. Nadal last month became the youngest member of a Davis Cup- winning team, helping Spain to victory by beating Roddick.

``He's a worthy opponent,'' said Hewitt, who's seeking to become the first Australian to win the men's title since Mark Edmondson in 1976. ``He's hungry. He loves going out there, playing in big matches.''

The winner will face sixth-seeded Guillermo Coria or fellow Argentina David Nalbandian, the No. 9 seed, in the quarterfinals. Their fourth-round match is last up on Rod Laver Arena.

Before then, 10th-ranked Molik faces four-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams as she seeks to emulate Chris O'Neil's 1978 victory in her home Grand Slam. Williams won their previous three encounters without losing a set.

No. 6 Elena Dementieva, runner-up at the French and U.S. Opens last year, is seeking to become the third Russian woman into the last eight. She faces 12th-seeded Patty Schnyder.

The winner of that match will play third-seeded Anastasia Myskina or French No. 19 seed Nathalie Dechy. A Russian victory at the year's first Grand Slam would give the country a sweep of all four major titles.

Top-seeded Roger Federer and four-time champion Andre Agassi advanced to a quarterfinal meeting yesterday, while Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova set up a match with U.S. Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in the last eight.

To contact the reporter on this story: Dan Baynes at Melbourne Park through the Sydney news room at dbaynes@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: January 23, 2005 21:13 EST