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Berdych gets easy ride

Rotterdam -Tomas Berdych followed the example of top seed Roger Federer by making almost effortless progress into the quarter-finals of the Rotterdam Open on Thursday as opponent Marcos Baghdatis quit while trailing 3-0 in their second-round match.

Berdych spent just 19 minutes on court but put the former Australian Open finalist under immediate pressure with five break points.

On Wednesday, Federer moved easily into the last eight at the Ahoy stadium as second-round opponent Mikhail Youzhny withdrew a day before their contest with a left foot injury.

Federer still had to go out and win his opening match against Frenchman Nicolas Mahut, which he did, 6-4, 6-4.

Federer and Berdych set the pace for No 3 seed and Rotterdam debutant Juan Del Potro, with the Argentine 2009 US Open champion to face Slovak Karol Beck later in a bid for the quarters.

Frenchman Richard Gasquet, seeded fifth, continued his steady progress at his second tournament appearance, defeating Russian Alex Bogomolov 6-3, 6-2.

Italy's Andreas Seppi dispatched German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4, 6-2 in their second-round encounter.

The 16th-ranked Gasquet improved his record to seven wins this season to next face Russian Niklay Davydenko.

The Frenchman with six career titles went through to victory in just over an hour and a quarter with four aces and four breaks of the Bogomolov serve.

"I'm happy to win in two sets and get into the quarters," said the winner who lost in his first Rotterdam appearance in the 2009 first round.

"I didn't know how he plays, but I'm in good shape with my game and hoping to go further - why not win the next round.

His quarter-final with Davydenko is a repeat of the match he won this month in Montpellier, running his record over the veteran Russian to four wins in five encounters.

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