MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — James Blake refused to make excuses. He played well; Fernando Gonzalez was simply too good.

The 10th-seeded Gonzalez ended No. 5 Blake's hopes of reaching the Australian Open quarterfinals, carving out a 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (4) victory Monday in a display of high-quality tennis.

"I'm sure there's a million reasons, a million excuses I could come up with," a disappointed Blake said. "He played better than me today. Served better, returned better. There were a few points there I'd love to have over again, but that's the way it goes. He played great on the big points."

Gonzalez, of Chile, meets the winner of the late match between second-seeded Rafael Nadal and No. 15 Andy Murray. His confidence is high.

"I know that I have a really tough match on the next round, too," Gonzalez said. "But I trust in my game the way that I'm playing. I feel that I can beat anyone."

Like Gonzalez, fourth-seeded Kim Clijsters stayed hot, too, beating No. 15 Daniela Hantuchova 6-1, 7-5 after dropping only nine games in her first three matches. She next faces off-court friend Martina Hingis, the three-time champion here who struggled before dispatching 19th-seeded Li Na 4-6, 6-3, 6-0.

"It's always a pleasure to play her again here," Clijsters said. "She's just a great champion."

Top-seeded Maria Sharapova had to work hard to get past No. 22 Vera Zvonareva 7-5, 6-4 in an all-Russian match and plays another Russian in the quarterfinals — 12th-seeded Ana Chakvetadze, a 6-4, 6-1 winner over No. 8 Patty Schnyder.

"I thought I played a lot better today than in the previous rounds," Sharapova said. "But I will definitely have to step it up again."

Sharapova, who played in broiling heat her first match and in steamy conditions with the roof closed and the air conditioning malfunctioning in her last, had a chilly night this time.

She put constant pressure on Zvonareva's serve and finally cashed her 10th break point to pull ahead 6-5, then held serve to finish off the first set.

Zvonareva double-faulted twice on break points in the second set as Sharapova raced to a 5-2 lead. Sharapova faltered while serving for the match the first time and fell behind 0-40 the second, then double-faulted on her first match point. She took advantage on her third opportunity on a forehand down the line.

Tommy Haas ended eighth-seeded David Nalbandian's endurance run, advancing to the quarterfinals with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 win. Haas will next play third-seeded Nikolay Davydenko, who dropped a set for the first time in the tournament before beating No. 13 Tomas Berdych 5-7, 6-4, 6-1, 7-6 (5).