MELBOURNE, Jan. 27 -- Rafael Nadal and Stanislas Wawrinka progressed to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in Melbourne on Monday, with both players winning thrilling matches against very dangerous opponents.

Nadal edged ahead of Australia's Nick Kyrgios 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (4), while Wawrinka defeated world No. 4 Daniil Medvedev 6-2, 2-6, 4-6, 7-6 (2), 6-2.

They join Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer in the final eight, with the business end of the tournament rapidly approaching.

Moving through in the women's draw was Simona Halep, who beat Elise Mertens 6-4, 6-4, while an in-form Garbine Muguruza defeated ninth seed Kiki Bertens 6-3, 6-3 to progress to the quarterfinals.

Monday night's Kyrgios-Nadal match-up was a big occasion for Australian fans, throwing their support behind the local hopeful who lived up to their expectations, despite it proving not to be enough.

In the past, Nadal has been critical of Kyrgios' on-court antics, which last year earned the Australian a six-month probation from the ATP tour. However, on the night, Kyrgios let his tennis speak for itself, drawing praise from across the net.

"Today I think he played very serious, he played very focused, and he tried his best," Nadal said after the match.

"When he's able to play like this, his talent is to be one of the best players in the world."

Before the match, Kyrgios emerged from the locker rooms wearing a Los Angeles Lakers jersey, in tribute to Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash on Sunday. He joined a raft of other players at the tournament who paid their respects to the fallen basketball legend throughout the day.

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