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Five-times champion Serena Williams has delivered another devastating display to set up a mouth-watering Australian Open showdown with her teenage heir apparent Sloane Stephens.

Williams dealt with Russian Maria Kirilenko as though she was running late for a nine o'clock movie, motoring into the last eight for the eighth time in Melbourne with a 6-2 6-0 centre-court mauling on Monday night.

Extraordinarily, the 15-times grand slam champion landed almost 90 per cent of first serves and raised her tournament tally to a championship-best 30 aces in swatting aside Kirilenko in 57 minutes.

"I thought I played really well," Williams said.

"I didn't expect to come out and play so well tonight. I was like `wow'. I saw I had like 95 per cent of first serves in the first set and I thought: `Who is this girl?'

"It's not me normally."

The victory was Williams' 40th from her past 41 matches and she will be a raging favourite on Wednesday to end the career-best run of 19-year-old Stephens, who idolises her fellow American.

"I think she's playing great," Williams said of her challenger.

"We played just two weeks ago in Brisbane and she played really unbelievable; I think she has incredible talent.

"I actually admire her as well. It will be a really tough match for me."

Stephens qualified for her maiden grand slam quarter-final with a 6-1 3-6 7-5 win over Serbian Bojana Jovanovski but will need to reverse her 6-4 6-3 loss to Williams in Brisbane a fortnight ago to keep her dream campaign going.

The fast-rising world No.25 was giving Williams due respect but also refusing to rule out the possibility of causing a grand slam boilover.

"She's obviously one of the greatest players to ever play the game," Stephens said.

"Without all that, it's still a tennis match. You have to go out and play your game, no matter what.

"Without the titles, with the titles, it's still a tennis match. The court's the same size.

"You're still playing a regular person across the net. You've just got to go out and play."

While Stephens will be contesting her first, 31-year-old Williams will line up for her 35th grand slam quarter-final.

"It's awesome," the third seed said.

"I've had a great career, especially here in Australia.

"I love it here, so I look forward to a good match."

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It's boom or bust for Bernard Tomic, who says he must win the opening set or perish against fearless frontrunner Roger Federer in their Australian Open blockbuster on Saturday night.

In an unparalleled career, Federer's only three grand slam defeats from a set up against non-major winners have come against finalists David Nalbandian, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Robin Soderling.

It is a frightening record that Tomic is all too aware of heading into their master-versus-apprentice third-round showdown.

"The most important thing against Roger is that I've got to hold and keep it close within the first set," Tomic said.

"If I keep it close in the first set, manage to win that first set, then it can be a different story.

"Being one set to love up is a huge advantage against him. If he frees up and wins that first set, it's different.

"But I'm confident."

Not dropping serve in four matches and 76 games is fuelling Tomic's belief that he can eliminate the second-ranked Federer before the quarter-finals of a slam for the first time since the 2004 French Open.

"I've got my serve, which is a weapon that I can keep holding now against him," the challenger said when asked how he had improved since his three previous losses to the Swiss great.

"Obviously I'm serving good. That's on my side now, so I've got to use that."

Despite playing - and winning - 10 matches in little more than a fortnight and battling stifling heat in his tough second-round victory over German Daniel Brands, Tomic insisted he was feeling "mentally and physically fine".

Federer agreed Tomic would handle the big-time occasion in what is the most anticipated Open men's showdown involving a local hope since Lleyton Hewitt lost the centenary final in 2005 to Marat Safin.

"To me, he seems to be more of a guy that likes to be on centre court, playing against the top guys. He feels like he belongs there," Federer said.

"I think it's going to be make it easier for him to play me.

"Plus, with his confidence, that is also going to help him in the bigger moments to stay more calm."

Nevertheless the 17-times grand slam champion and Wimbledon titleholder was hopeful his vast experience would see him through to the last 16 for the 35th consecutive major.

"Look, I have so much more experience than him. Last year I reached my thousandth match on tour," Federer said.

"I know how hard a five-setter can be. I know how intense a night session can be and all these things.

"Whatever that means - length of rally, length of match, intensity, I've been there.

"That could potentially help me, but it could also not help me.

"We'll see how it goes ... I'll find out many, many things.

"We both have to live up to a big match, big hype, and then we can talk about it afterwards."

Federer was the last player to beat Tomic in Australia, stopping the 20-year-old's run in the fourth round last summer in Melbourne.

He also beat Tomic in their two other career meetings to date - in Davis Cup on grass in Sydney in 2011 and last August in Cincinnati.

The reward for the winner will be a fourth-round date on Monday with either Canadian 13th seed Milos Raonic or German 17th seed Philipp Kohlschreiber.

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