Melbourne VIC, Australia, 13 December 2017 | Luke Dennehy

THE men’s No.1 and No.2 two seeds  – Alex Bolt and Alex De Minaur – continued their march in the AO Play-off at Melbourne Park on Wednesday, both recording easy wins.

Bolt, 24, defeated Alexander Crnokrak, 17, 6-1 6-3 6-3, while De Minaur, 18, defeated Matthew Barton, 25, 6-2 6-1 6-2.

With searing temperatures over 35 degrees, both players were extremely happy to get the job done quickly.

> AUSTRALIAN OPEN PLAY-OFF: live streaming, scores, draws and schedules

“It’s wasn’t ideal conditions out there, but at the end of the day you just have to get out and find out a way to win,” de Minaur said. “Every day is a different day.”

De Minaur hasn’t lost a set in two rounds in his bid to win a wildcard into the Australian Open.

“I thought I played another great match,” he said.

“I thought I backed up my form from the first round, and I’m really pleased how I’ve been keeping my concentration at a high level in both matches.”

As for Bolt, his win against the 18/u Australian champion Crnokrak was a much quicker affair compared to his five-set first-round win against Benard Nkomba.

“I had a tough battle on Monday and I think coming out today because of that first match I was seeing the ball really well,” Bolt said.

“I didn’t really want to playing in the heat in the afternoon so I wanted to be spot on from the get go.”

Bolt, who has now played two rising stars of Australian tennis in Crnokrak and Nkomba, said he was impressed with both players and their games.

“He really took it to me,” Bolt said of Crnokrak.

“He has got a huge serve and I knew I had to whether the storm a bit. I think it was good I was able to get on top of his game early and have a bit of a run.”

Another winner in the quarterfinals was Marc Polmans, who defeated Andrew Whittington in a gruelling four-setter 7-6(2) 6-4 4-6 6-2.

The last match of the day pitted last year’s winner Omar Jasika against Christopher O’Connell; the pair are currently locked in a battle on Court 8.