Federer stays on course for title

Roger Federer remained on course for a third consecutive US Open title despite dropping the opening set of his fourth round tie against Feliciano Lopez last night.

He will play Andy Roddick in the quarter finals. Roddick, the fifth seed advanced when No 9 Tomas Berdych retired due to illness.

Sixth seed James Blake went down to a five-set defeat against German 10th seed Tommy Haas after failing to convert three match points. Haas will face Nikolay Davydenko in the quarter final after the fourth-seeded Russian crushed Korean Hyung-Taik Lee 6-1 6-3 6-4.

World No 1 Justine Henin will face former Serena Williams tonight in the US Open with a semi-final place up for grabs.