Roddick won both the US and Australian Open junior titles in 2000

Top seed Andy Roddick reached the last eight of the ATP Legg Mason Tennis Classic in Washington DC with a 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 win against Sam Querrey.

Roddick, in his first tournament since taking a break after Wimbledon to recover from a hip injury, was too strong for his compatriot, seeded 16th.

It was Roddick's 500th tour win, a feat achieved by only 36 in the open era.

Tenth seed Tommy Haas also needed three sets to overcome former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-5 2-6 6-1.

Second seed Juan Martin del Potro battled back to beat Lleyton Hewitt 4-6 6-3 7-6 (7-2).

Hewitt appeared to have capitulated in the deciding set but never gave up, saving two match-points to force a tie-break before finally succumbing.

Fernando Gonzalez, seeded four, stormed through with a 6-2 6-4 win over American Wayne Odesnik, while seeds Robin Soderling and Tomas Berdych were others who needed three sets to progress.

Only four current players have passed the 500 wins mark, Roger Federer with 657, Spain's Carlos Moya on 573 and Australian Hewitt with 511.

"It's a pretty small number who have gotten there, an elite group," Roddick said. "Moreso, I got there with enough time to add to it significantly. It's just a nice validation of the consistency I've been able to have in my career."

Roddick, 27 later this month, won his only Grand Slam title at the 2003 US Open. Now ranked fifth in the world he is seeking a 29th career crown this week and a fourth Washington title to go with the cake he received for his 500th match victory.

"That's kind of a milestone in tennis," Roddick said. "It's a very humbling experience. Who knows? We might try for 500 more."

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