World number one Roger Federer beat Greg Rusedski 6-3, 6-1 while Marat Safin breezed past Lee Hyung-taik 6-0, 7-5
Qualifier Sergiy Stakhovsky sent Marat Safin to the brink of retirement when he beat the former World No 1 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in the St Petersburg Open semi-finals on Saturday.
The top seed was dumped out of the Barcelona Open by Argentine Jose Acasuso in straight sets.
He won 6-4, 6-4 in a high-powered quarter-final at the Valencia claycourt Open on Friday.
"For some reason I found the power to fight, to wait for my opportunities and eventually they came," the Russian said.
The former US Open champion has withdrawn from this year's tournament because of a lingering wrist injury.
Argentine Franco Squillari provided the shock of the first round at the Valencia Open by beating the second seed 6-4, 5-7, 6-2
The Russian registered an easy 6-2, 6-2 victory in the second round of the Rome Masters.
The 2000 champion was beaten by Sweden's Thomas Enqvist in the first round at the US Open.
Marat Safin's swan song hit another sour note at the Montreal Masters with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 first round defeat by Frenchman Gael Monfils on Monday.
Former world number one Marat Safin tumbled out of the Swedish Open on Wednesday losing to Spaniard Nicolas Almagro 6-3, 7-6 in the first round and said he was looking forward to a life free from rackets and balls.
Marat Safin lifted the evening gloom at Wimbledon as he beat Italy's Andreas Seppi 7-6, 3-6, 7-6, 6-4 and reach the last 16.
The Russian ace will meet defending champion Andre Agassi in the semi-finals of the Australian Open. A round-up of Tuesday's matches.\n\n
Potito Starace beat Russian Marat Safin in the second round of the Swedish Open on Wednesday
Russia have recalled Marat Safin for next month's Davis Cup first-round tie against Serbia.
The Russian was fined the maximum $10,000 for refusing to attend a news conference after his first round defeat at the French Open.
The second semi-final at the Las Vegas Open will be between Russian Evgeny Korolev and Austrian fourth seed Juergen Melzer.
Marat Safin has withdrawn from the Russia team for the Davis Cup quarter-final against France with a knee injury
Russia's Dmitry Tursunov was ruled out of the Davis Cup tie against Chile with a wrist injury.
Marat Safin survived another tense match to beat Israel's Dudi Sela 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 7-6, 6-0 in the second round.
They head the line-up for the select eight-man field at the Jan. 10-13 event.
Roger Federer stayed on track for a record-equalling 14th Grand Slam title when he swatted aside former champion Marat Safin in the third round. The anticipated clash of tennis juggernauts failed to materialise as the Swiss totally dominated the match between former world number ones to win 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 under floodlights.
Roger Federer set up a juicy third round clash with former Australian Open champion Marat Safin after finally subduing a stubborn Evgeny Korolev 6-2, 6-3, 6-1 on Wednesday.
The Russian former world No 1 was beaten in the second round by Serbia's Janko Tipsarevic.
The Russian advanced to the quarter-finals of the Legg Mason Classic with a 7-6, 7-6 victory.
Australian Open champion Marat Safin withdrew from the Hopman Cup in Perth due to a long-standing knee injury
Safin, troubled by pain in his left knee for the last two months, had a small operation this week in Italy to repair a ligament tear.
The Australian Open champion has not fully recovered from a knee injury and will miss next month's Masters Cup in Shanghai.
Andy Roddick beat Marat Safin 6-3, 6-3 to reach the final of the Kooyong Classic on Thursday.
Former world number one Marat Safin ended his playing career with a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 defeat by US Open champion Juan Martin del Porto at the Paris Masters on Wednesday.
Former world number one Marat Safin, in his final tournament before retiring, squeezed past French qualifier Thierry Ascione 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 in a Paris Masters first-round match on Monday. The gifted but erratic Russian, who has been hampered by injuries in recent years and has dropped out of the top 50, was made to work hard against a player ranked 168th in the world.
Marat Safin, just a few weeks short of retirement, knocked out top seed Nikolay Davydenko 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 in a high-profile first-round tie between the two Russians at the Kremlin Cup on Wednesday.
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