Defending champion Stan Wawrinka has lined up an Australian Open quarter-final showdown with Japanese superstar Kei Nishikori.

Wawrinka keep his title defence on track with a hard-fought win over Spain’s Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.

• Kyrgios, tennis’ No.1 showman, lights up Open
• Djokovic feared he’d be a one-major wonder

The fourth-seeded Swiss saved four set points in the fourth set to triumph 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 4-6 7-6 (10-8).

Nishikori did it more comfortably against Spanish veteran David Ferrer, who has twice made the semi-finals at Melbourne Park, winning 6-3 6-3 6-3.

The Japanese fifth seed has hit the big time on the back of a break-out 2014 when he became the first man from an Asian country to reach a grand slam final, losing the US Open title to Marin Cilic.

He blasted 43 winners to Ferrer’s 14 and, although he tightened a little in the final game, got home on his third match point in just over two hours.

It continued Nishikori’s recent dominance over the world No.10, having won their last five successive meetings.

“I’m always ready to play five sets against him so I was surprised to win in three,” Nishikori said.

“I’ve had three good matches here and have been hitting well so I had a good game.”

Nishikori and Wawrinka played an epic five-set quarter-final match at last year’s US Open, which Nishikori said gave him confidence he could go the distance and compete with the world’s best.

Wawrinka’s victory over Garcia-Lopez was his 11th straight at Melbourne Park, including last year’s four-set win over Rafael Nadal to take the title.

Wawrinka edged the Spaniard in the first set and looked in control in the second and on track for a straight-sets win.

But the wily Spaniard, who bumped Wawrinka out of the French Open in the first round last year, started to find his rhythm and took the third.

Wawrinka was 5-0 down in the fourth-set tiebreaker and then 6-2, having to save four set points.

But after reeling off five straight points and then missing his first match point with a volley error, Wawrinka converted at his second attempt to move through after a tick over three hours.

“I just tried to fight and I had some great passing on my backhand side,” Wawrinka said after clubbing 70 winners on Margaret Court Arena.

“It’s always great to play here, especially after what happened last year.”

– AAP