Less than a week after announcing that it would be his last event as a professional tennis player, Andy Roddick has advanced to the fourth round of the US Open after defeating Fabio Fognini 7-5, 7-6, 4-6, 6-4 over the weekend.

Roddick, whose only previous Grand Slam victory came at the 2003 US Open, will now have to contend with Juan Martin del Potro if he wants to progress further, after the seventh seed took down Leonardo Mayer in the third round.

Meanwhile on the other side the draw, Roger Federer has continued his strong run of form by comfortably putting away Fernando Verdasco in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.

Mardy Fish had a less comfortable time in his third round match against Gilles Simon, but eventually beat out the 27-year-old Frenchman to advance. That means Fish will take on the Swiss Maestro in a replay of the Cincinnati Masters quarter-final to decide who will advance into the business end of the tournament.

London 2012 gold medallist Andy Murray would have been hoping to make light work of his third round opponent, Spaniard Feliciano Lopez. Instead the Scotsman had to endure a gruelling four hour contest which left him exhausted but victorious, 7-6, 7-6, 4-6, 7-6.

"I was struggling physically. It was incredibly hot out there. The heat made the conditions extremely challenging," admitted Murray afterwards. However he went on to downplay the toll that the match may have had on his body, instead emphasising that the hard court experience could help him later on in the event.

"I hope it's a benefit, if anything. I need to spend time on the court. I need to go through tough moments, tough situations, because I've been in pressure situations recently but not necessarily physically-demanding conditions."

Murray will be hoping those words ring true when he takes on Milos Raonic in the next round. Other big names to advance to the fourth round include Tomas Berdych, Marin Cilic, David Ferrer and Novak Djokovic.