Dan Evans defies the odds and breaks new ground to join Andy Murray in Australian Open last 16

Just a week ago you would have got long odds on there being two Britons and no Serbs through to the second week of the men’s singles here at the Australian Open but Andy Murray and Dan Evans succeeded where Novak Djokovic failed.

Twenty-four hours after Djokovic’s shocking departure from a tournament he had won six times, Murray won a place in the last 16 for the ninth year in a row by beating Sam Querrey 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 before Evans made the fourth round of a Grand Slam event for the first time by beating Bernard Tomic 7-5, 7-6, 7-6.

Since the men’s draw here was expanded to 128 players in 1988, the only previous occasion when two Britons reached the last 16 was when Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski did so in 2001 before losing their next matches.

If Murray’s victory over Querrey, the world No32, was true to form, Evans once again defied the odds. Having recorded the best victory of his career when he beat Marin Cilic, the world No7, in the last round, the world No51 has now accounted for the last Australian in the men’s singles with his victory over Tomic, the world No27.

In the fourth round on Sunday Murray will take on the world No50, Germany’s Mischa Zverev, who has never gone this far in a Grand Slam tournament, while Evans will meet the world No12, France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, a former runner-up here.

Djokovic’s defeat has left Murray as the clear favourite to win the tournament for the first time following five previous defeats in finals but the Scot’s third-round opponent was a reminder of the potential banana skins ahead.

At Wimbledon last summer Querrey produced one of the shocks of the year to beat Djokovic in the third round.

There had been heavy rain overnight and by Melbourne standards the temperature was a chilly 19C when Murray and Querrey started at 3.45pm in Hisense Arena, the third show court here. A stiff breeze contributed to conditions that were very different to the heat of the first two days.

The American hit the ball with all his usual power, especially in the early stages.

Murray was still feeling the ankle injury he had suffered in the previous round but once he had saved the first break point of the match at 4-3 and broken serve in the next game with a stunning combination of shots the world No1 took charge.

Querrey had only himself to blame for Murray’s second break of serve early in the second set after hitting four shots beyond the baseline to put the Scot firmly in control.

The third set was closer but after Querrey had retrieved an early break he dropped serve again at 4-4, having made a horrible volley error to give Murray break point.

Murray served out for the match after an hour and 59 minutes.

“I felt better and better as the match went on in terms of my movement,” Murray said afterwards when asked about his ankle injury.

“I was maybe a little bit hesitant at the beginning because it was just a little bit sore but I was moving well at the end.”

Murray said he had been surprised by Djokovic’s defeat given his extraordinary record here but stressed that the Serb’s results over the last seven months, while moderate by his standards, would be very good by anyone else’s.

“He has played some really good stuff over the last six or seven months,” Murray said. “It’s just not been as consistent as what it was the three years before. But it’s unreasonable to expect anyone to keep up that level for their whole career.”

Zverev, Murray’s next opponent, beat Tunisia’s Malek Jaziri 6-1, 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 to earn a place in the fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time. The world No50, one of the few modern players to play serve and volley, has been overshadowed in recent times by his hugely talented younger brother, Alexander, who meets Rafael Nadal in the third round tomorrow.

Evans and Tomic followed Murray and Querrey into Hisense Arena, where the home crowd did their best to get behind Tomic. Evans, however, rose magnificently to the occasion. The 26-year-old from Birmingham, who does not even have a shirt sponsor at the moment, attacked intelligently and volleyed superbly.

A break of serve at 5-5 helped Evans win the first set but the Briton was broken when he served for the second at 5-4. His frustration was evident when he was given a warning for an audible obscenity as he served at 5-6 but he held firm and played superbly in the ensuing tie-break, which he won 7-2.

At 4-4 in the third set Evans saved three break points and at 5-5 and 40-40 he kept his cool when the match was held up for five minutes because of rain. Once again he was much the better player in the tie-break. From 2-1 down he won six of the last seven points to claim victory after two hours and 48 minutes.

“It was tough,” Evans said afterwards. “Bernie’s difficult. He’s unorthodox. He plays aggressively and then sometimes slows it down. I found it hard at the start. I’m happy to have come through. It was three tight sets. It could have gone either way.”