Wawrinka battles into Open fourth round

Stan Wawrinka was happy to win ugly and progress safely into the fourth round in his pursuit of a second Australian Open crown at Melbourne Park.

The fourth seed had to overcome a one-set deficit, four service breaks and 42 unforced errors on Friday to squeeze past Viktor Troicki 3-6 6-2 6-2 7-6 (9-7).

But he was unfazed by his scrappy performance.

"It was not always the best tennis, but I'm happy to win the match," Wawrinka said.

"That's all that counts. In general, it was a good momentum. Second, third and fourth set, I was playing better.

"(But) I don't really care if I play really well, well, or okay. I want to win. I want to get through those matches.

"I want to go as far as possible. That's what matters at the end of the day."

Wawrinka next plays Italian Andreas Seppi on Sunday after Nick Kyrgios' conqueror marched on with a 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7-1) 7-6 (7-2) win over Belgian Steve Darcis.

He knows Seppi - who also took out Wawrinka's celebrated countryman Roger Federer two years ago - will be no pushover.

"It's going to be a good match, for sure. He's been playing very well this tournament," Wawrinka said.

"We've played each other many times in the past. I'm really excited."