Murray found the going tough against Wawrinka [GALLO/GETTY]

At this stage last year, he beat the now-banned Richard Gasquet in five sets and it took him the same number on Monday to beat 19th seed Stanislas Wawrinka.

But the Scot looked very tired in that fifth set, and how much it will have taken out of him is worrying for home fans.

The third seed takes on veteran Juan Carlos Ferrero, who was in scintillating form in beating eighth seed Gilles Simon in straight sets in the fourth round.

Murray will no doubt be on Centre Court – and will therefore have the support of 15,000 people – but he will need every last one to get him safely through to his first Wimbledon semi-final.

On paper, Murray should ease past the former world number one; he beat the 2003 French Open Champion with room to spare at Queens, an SW19 warm-up event.

He was dominant in the second and third set against Swiss number two Wawrinka, and even had a 3-0 lead in the final set.

Lapses

But the home favourite suffers lapses in concentration, which a player like Ferrero will pounce upon and make him pay.

If Murray wants to win this title, he needs to bounce back to a rapid win against the world number 70 and re-assert the fear factor he seems to have created for himself.

Roger Federer will be out to stop him.

As in the French Open final weeks before, he dispatched Robin Soderling with aplomb.

Although taken to two tie-breaks, the five-time Wimbledon champ never looked troubled, and it really looks like nobody, bar Murray on a good day, will beat the second seed.

The loss in last year's final to Rafael Nadal can't have been nice for the Swiss master.

He seems to have a love affair with the courts of SW19, and will be out to regain his beloved title.

The superiority with which he has played, losing just one set in four matches, is that of someone convinced he will win.

And with his nearest rival faltering, who would bet against him?

Djokovic? The world number four has been sneaking through the draw, and after a win in straight sets yesterday, albeit over an unseeded Dudi Sela, his confidence must be growing.

German bite

The Serb is pencilled in to meet Federer in the semi-finals, and he will have to play well in order to beat Tommy Haas, the German who is himself in very good form.

Either way, the semi-final in the lower half of the draw looks like it could be very exciting.

Andy Roddick also had a surprisingly easy passage into the quarter finals, with a straight set win over Tomas Berdych.

This had the potential to go all the way to five sets, but the American number one was dominant throughout and will play Lleyton Hewitt, who is continuing his fine run.

Hopefully the match will live up to its billing and produce some fireworks; the sixth seed is playing some beautiful tennis and could be a worthy finalist…if he gets there.

Best Win: J C Ferrero def. G Simon (8) 7-6 6-3 6-2
Upset Potential: T Haas (24) vs N Djokovic (4), L Hewitt vs A Roddick (6)

Lisicki has been looking dangerous [AFP]

In defeating Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets, she has reached her first Grand Slam quarter finals, and in doing so has beaten the 32nd, 5th and 9th seeds.

Wozniacki, winner at Eastbourne, was a big tip for the semi-finals, but was blown off the court by the German's big serve and heavy ground strokes.

Lisicki is unseeded this year, and it's difficult to see why it has taken the 19-year-old so long to repeat the form she showed earlier in the year when she defeated Venus Williams in Charleston.

With the game she is showing at these championships, she will be a top ten player by the end of the year.

Dinara Safina, the top seed, is her quarter-final opponent on Tuesday, after the Russian battled past the 29-year-old Amelie Mauresmo in the first match to be played under the new Centre Court roof.

Star turn

It took the Russian three sets to beat the 2004 Champion, and the player of the tournament so far, Lisicki, will put up a much sterner test.

The crowds love her here, and being on Centre Court will not phase the rising star, who has gained so much confidence from her run in southwest London.

A fantastic serve and a cool head will see her through.

Once again, the Williams sisters impressed.

Venus was leading former world number one Ana Ivanovic 6-1 0-1 before the Serb had to retire with injury.

But it's hard to believe the 2008 French Open Champion would have staged a dramatic comeback.

Ivanovic has been much improved this week after an alarming lack of form in the past year, and we will be seeing more of her later in the year, injury allowing.

Venus, though, was on fire.

Yet to drop a set, like her sister Serena, it really looks like nobody will be able to beat her.

Nobody can match her power, and she is playing some very good grass court tennis, coming to the net more often than has been seen on the women's tour for many a year.

Three-in-a-row is looking more and more likely.

Serena, the second seed, will find the going tough in the quarter finals, though.

Belarus battler

She is up against Victoria Azarenka, another teenager on the rise challenging the dominance of the Russians and Americans.

Seeded eighth, she battled her way past Nadia Petrova (10) and will push Serena all the way.

Dementieva has yet to drop a set [AFP]

Her mental state is her weak point, and if a negative crowd get into her head, she could break very quickly.

It is very difficult to call who will win this match, as the world number two is another who has lapses of concentration in big matches.

Azarenka will no doubt take advantage of these, so it’s a battle of the minds rather than of power – which they have in abundance.

Second on centre court…it could end up being another night match.

Elena Dementieva is another player not to drop a set.

Against the unseeded Elena Vesnina, she was not broken throughout the match and takes on another unseeded player in the form of Francesca Schiavone.

She has yet to really face a test, or another seed, although Schiavone is in very good form.

A tight match is promised, and the Russian number two will have to show why she is number four in the world to maintain her 100 per cent set record.

She is probably the fittest player on the tour, and an epic match between Serena and Azarenka will work in her favour.

A first Wimbledon final beckons for Dementieva.

Best Win: S Lisicki def. C Wozniacki (9) 6-4 6-4
Upset Potential: D Safina (1) vs S Lisicki, V Azarenka (8) vs S Williams (2)