<p>A ruthless Novak Djokovic ominously warned Monday his hamstring injury was on the mend after his "best day so far" at the Australian Open as he surged into a 13th Melbourne Park quarter-final.</p>.<p>The Serbian fourth seed demolished Alex de Minaur 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena to move a step closer to a 10th Australian title and 22nd major crown.</p>.<p>With his left thigh again strapped, the 35-year-old was a man on a mission, expending as little energy as possible in a 2hrs 6mins romp to inch within sight of Rafael Nadal's slam record.</p>.<p>Djokovic aggravated his hamstring during his run to a 92nd title at the Adelaide International this month and has been struggling with it since.</p>.<p>But he moved freely against De Minaur to set up a clash with fifth seed Andrey Rublev for a semi-final berth after the Russian toppled Danish teen Holger Rune in a tense five-set clash on the same court.</p>.<p>"I didn't feel anything today, so today was great," Djokovic, who will return to world number one for the first time since June if he wins the tournament, said of the hamstring.</p>.<p>"I thank my medical team, physio, God -- anybody that really helped me. I keep on going.</p>.<p>"Obviously I don't want to celebrate too early, I'm still in the tournament.</p>.<p>"I was feeling very good in the first match (in Melbourne), in the second match not so great, so I know things can change really quickly and I don't take things for granted.</p>.<p>"But I'm really pleased with the way I played today, the way I moved, the way I hit the ball. I played the best match of this year so far."</p>.<p>Djokovic added that he had been pumping himself full of anti-inflammatory pills "trying to mask the pain".</p>.<p>"But I had to find a way with my team. Today was the best day so far of the tournament and hopefully it stays that way."</p>.<p>Victory put him into a 13th Melbourne quarter-final to move fourth on the all-time list behind Roger Federer, Nadal and John Newcombe.</p>.<p>It is his 54th Grand Slam quarter-final in total -- second only to the retired Federer's 58.</p>.<p>De Minaur, who recorded his first victory against a top-five player in November when he beat Daniil Medvedev at the Paris Masters, was always facing an uphill climb.</p>.<p>Djokovic has not lost in Melbourne since 2018 -- he did not play in 2022 -- and has now won 25 consecutive matches at the Australian Open.</p>.<p>"I came up against a very good opponent with a very high level today," said De Minaur.</p>.<p>"I think what I experienced today was probably Novak very close to his best, I would say. To me, if that's the level, I think he's definitely the guy that's going to take the title."</p>.<p>Djokovic always had the measure of the young Australian and broke to love in game six, consolidating without dropping a point for 5-2.</p>.<p>With De Minaur struggling under the pressure, he sent a baseline forehand long to hand the Serb another break and the set in just 35 minutes.</p>.<p>Only 54 per cent of De Minaur's first serves went in, compared with Djokovic's 76 per cent, with the winners 9-1 in favour of the dominant Serb.</p>.<p>De Minaur won the sixth game in the second set, ending a run of nine consecutive losses, but it was only a brief moment of respite.</p>.<p>Djokovic stretched his hamstring at the changeover and immediately applied pressure on De Minaur's first service game to break again in the third set, all but ending the match.</p>
<p>A ruthless Novak Djokovic ominously warned Monday his hamstring injury was on the mend after his "best day so far" at the Australian Open as he surged into a 13th Melbourne Park quarter-final.</p>.<p>The Serbian fourth seed demolished Alex de Minaur 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena to move a step closer to a 10th Australian title and 22nd major crown.</p>.<p>With his left thigh again strapped, the 35-year-old was a man on a mission, expending as little energy as possible in a 2hrs 6mins romp to inch within sight of Rafael Nadal's slam record.</p>.<p>Djokovic aggravated his hamstring during his run to a 92nd title at the Adelaide International this month and has been struggling with it since.</p>.<p>But he moved freely against De Minaur to set up a clash with fifth seed Andrey Rublev for a semi-final berth after the Russian toppled Danish teen Holger Rune in a tense five-set clash on the same court.</p>.<p>"I didn't feel anything today, so today was great," Djokovic, who will return to world number one for the first time since June if he wins the tournament, said of the hamstring.</p>.<p>"I thank my medical team, physio, God -- anybody that really helped me. I keep on going.</p>.<p>"Obviously I don't want to celebrate too early, I'm still in the tournament.</p>.<p>"I was feeling very good in the first match (in Melbourne), in the second match not so great, so I know things can change really quickly and I don't take things for granted.</p>.<p>"But I'm really pleased with the way I played today, the way I moved, the way I hit the ball. I played the best match of this year so far."</p>.<p>Djokovic added that he had been pumping himself full of anti-inflammatory pills "trying to mask the pain".</p>.<p>"But I had to find a way with my team. Today was the best day so far of the tournament and hopefully it stays that way."</p>.<p>Victory put him into a 13th Melbourne quarter-final to move fourth on the all-time list behind Roger Federer, Nadal and John Newcombe.</p>.<p>It is his 54th Grand Slam quarter-final in total -- second only to the retired Federer's 58.</p>.<p>De Minaur, who recorded his first victory against a top-five player in November when he beat Daniil Medvedev at the Paris Masters, was always facing an uphill climb.</p>.<p>Djokovic has not lost in Melbourne since 2018 -- he did not play in 2022 -- and has now won 25 consecutive matches at the Australian Open.</p>.<p>"I came up against a very good opponent with a very high level today," said De Minaur.</p>.<p>"I think what I experienced today was probably Novak very close to his best, I would say. To me, if that's the level, I think he's definitely the guy that's going to take the title."</p>.<p>Djokovic always had the measure of the young Australian and broke to love in game six, consolidating without dropping a point for 5-2.</p>.<p>With De Minaur struggling under the pressure, he sent a baseline forehand long to hand the Serb another break and the set in just 35 minutes.</p>.<p>Only 54 per cent of De Minaur's first serves went in, compared with Djokovic's 76 per cent, with the winners 9-1 in favour of the dominant Serb.</p>.<p>De Minaur won the sixth game in the second set, ending a run of nine consecutive losses, but it was only a brief moment of respite.</p>.<p>Djokovic stretched his hamstring at the changeover and immediately applied pressure on De Minaur's first service game to break again in the third set, all but ending the match.</p>