Roger Federer
IN PHOTO: Roger Federer of Switzerland celebrates after winning his match against Samuel Groth of Australia at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, July 4, 2015. REUTERS/Henry Browne REUTERS/Henry Browne

For the third time in the professional career, Roger Federer and Roberta Bautista Agut will square off in the last 16 of the 2015 Wimbledon Championships. Federer, who is bidding to win his eighth title at SW19, defeated big-serving Australian Sam Groth 6-4 6-4 6-7 6-2, while Bautista Agut booked his spot in the fourth round after scoring straight sets victory over qualifier Nikolaz Basilashvili 7-6 6-0 6-1.

Federer dropped his first set in the tournament against the Australian. Groth lifted his game to win the third set in a tiebreak. The Swiss 17-time grand slam champion needed two hours and 16 minutes to dispatch Groth on Saturday at Centre Court.

This is the second time that Federer and Bautista Agut will meet in a grand slam tournament. Their first meeting took place at Flushing Meadows last year, with the Swiss crushing the Spaniard in straight sets during the fourth round match 6-4 6-3 6-2. Following their clash at the US Open, the two battled again at the Association of Tennis Professionals 1000 event in Shanghai. It will be the first time that Federer and Bautista Agut will meet on grass, which is the surface that Federer has won most of his 17 grand slam titles.

Federer leads their series 2-0. He has never dropped a set against Bautista Agut, who is making his third Wimbledon appearance.

The fourth round match is the best performance that the 20th-seeded Spaniard has achieved in a grand slam event. It is also the best performance that Bautista Agut has managed to pull off at the All England Club. He lost to David Ferrer 6-3 3-6 7-6 7-5 in the second round of the 2013 Wimbledon. Last year, he reached the third round before losing to British tennis ace Andy Murray 6-2 6-3 6-2.

If Federer survives Bautista Agut contest, he will face either sixth-seeded Czech star Tomas Berdych or Gilles Simon the quarterfinals. Federer leads his series against the two. He has a 14-6 head-to-head record against Berdych and 5-2 against Simon. Should Federer further progresses, a potential semifinal showdown with 2013 champion Murray lies up ahead. Federer and Bautista Agut will play for a slot in the quarterfinals on Centre Court at 4:30 p.m. BST.

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