Australian Open Tennis
Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska hits backhand return to Serbia's Ana Ivanovic during their fourth round match at the Australian Open tennis championship...
Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska hits backhand return to Serbia's Ana Ivanovic during their fourth round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Australian Open Tennis
Serbia's Novak Djokovic reacts during his fourth round match against Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka at the Australian Open tennis championship in M...
Serbia's Novak Djokovic reacts during his fourth round match against Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Australian Open Tennis
Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka kicks a ball during his fourth round match against Serbia's Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open tennis championshi...
Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka kicks a ball during his fourth round match against Serbia's Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013. (AP Photo/Andrew Brownbill)
Australian Open Tennis
Serbia's Ana Ivanovic sits on the court during her fourth round match against Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska at the Australian Open tennis championship...
Serbia's Ana Ivanovic sits on the court during her fourth round match against Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013. (AP Photo/Rob Griffith)
Novak Djokovic held off a valiant Swiss man for a five-hour, five-set victory Sunday night, extending his winning streak to 18 matches at the Australian Open and then ripping off his shirt to celebrate.
The big surprise, though, is that it was a fourth-round match against Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland, not Roger Federer.
Djokovic held off 15th-seeded Wawrinka 1-6, 7-5, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 12-10 in a momentum-swinging match to reach the quarterfinals for a 15th consecutive major.
The style was reminiscent of his 5-hour, 53-minute, five-set final win here last year against Rafael Nadal, only 51 minutes shorter.
Djokovic praised the 27-year-old Wawrinka, saying "he deserved equally to be a winner."
