The Russian will next face world No. 45 Philipp Petzschner, who upset defending champion and third seed Tomas Berdych 1-6 6-3 6-4.
World No. 5 Ferrer -- who has a tour-leading seven titles this year -- can also go through if he beats Janko Tipsarevic and defending Federer wins his third successive match.
Defending champion Lee Westwood shared third place with Alvaro Quiros to remain as world number one.
Maier leads with 922 points with Raich on 918 and fellow Austrian and defending champion Stephan Eberharter in third on 871.
Defending champion Victoria Azarenka and third-ranked Serena Williams will be among Sharapova's main opposition as she seeks to win her fifth grand slam title, having completed the set at last year's French Open.
World No. 1 Roger Federer begins his bid for a record-equaling 17th Masters 1000 tournament victory against Ecuador's Nicolas Lapentti on Saturday, while third seed and defending champion Andy Murray takes on American Mardy Fish.
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Russia are the defending champions and it is the third year in a row that the two nations have met in the Fed Cup.
Defending champion Tim Clark carded his third 69 of the tournament to finish alongside the overnight leaders and England's Ben Barham on 10 under par.
Lewis Hamilton shrugged off the effects of his plunge into the tyre wall on Friday to finish third just ahead of defending champion Kimi Raikkonen.
The Springboks, meanwhile, return home with no points from their three away matches, with next to no hope of defending their title after suffering a third straight defeat for the first time since 2007.
"He was defending really well in the second and third sets, especially in the second, " Djokovic told the ATP Tour website.
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Meanwhile, defending champion Marin Cilic will play Swiss third seed Stanislas Wawrinka in the final of the Chennai Open in India on Sunday.
And defending champion Federer made further errors in the third set.
Among the past Grand Slam title winners hoping to join her in the third round with victories Thursday: defending French Open champion Sharapova, Victoria Azarenka, Li Na and Petra Kvitova.
Swede Peter Hanson finished third on nine-under while defending champion Ian Poulter charged through the field on the final day to card a 66 and finish in a tie for fourth at eight-under alongside Scot Richie Ramsay and Thailand's Pariya Junhasavasdikul.
Since Chandler is the only other big man that can play long stretches of the game, the Knicks may be in trouble defending Heat forward Chris Bosh, who is the third best of Miami's "Big Three" but could still be a matchup problem when the opponent is in crisis, as the Knicks are now.
Along with the venomous groundstrokes, Nadal's ability to retrieve lost causes kept Djokovic under constant pressure and a seventh break of his serve enabled the defending champion to establish a 2-0 lead in the third set.
Lehigh University biochemistry professor Michael Behe testified for a third day on behalf of a school board that is defending its decision a year ago, to require students to hear a statement about intelligent design before ninth-grade biology lessons on evolution.
The third reason why U.S. Jewish leaders may be defending Obama's positions on Israel is because the Israeli left defends his position on Israel.
It put Barca 11 points clear of second-placed defending champions Real Madrid with four games to play, meaning victory at third-placed Atletico Madrid next Sunday will be enough to seal a 22nd domestic crown.
Holland reached the final for the third time in a row after a comprehensive 3-1 victory over defending champions Argentina.
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Three birdies and an eagle in the last four holes put defending champion Luke Donald back two off the lead, tied with Dane Anders Hansen in third.
Defending champion Keegan Bradley of the U.S. closed with 68 to tie for third with Sweden's Carl Petterson and Englishmen Justin Rose (66) and Ian Poulter (69).
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The win also gave the Knicks their third win over Miami this season, and control of the season series over the defending champs.
Defending champion and second seed Maria Sharapova has the tougher test, with Australian Open winner and third seed Victoria Azarenka in her half of the draw.
Defending champion Novak Djokovic continued his march to yet another semifinal against Federer as he secured his third-round place with a 6-4 6-4 6-4 win over 20-year-old American Ryan Harrison that finished as the evening light waned.
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The win gave the Springboks their third Tri-Nations title and also saw them record three consecutive Test victories over the defending champions for the first time since 1976.
Defending champions Shakhtar Donetsk moved five points clear in Group J , with the Ukrainian side winning their third successive game and scoring four goals for the third time, crushing Toulouse 4-0.
Defending Colonial champion Zach Johnson, who also won at Hogan's Alley in 2010, shot 66 to finish third at 12 under for his first top-10 finish this season.
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