
Wimbledon top seed Jannik Sinner keeps calm and carries on as Cameron Norrie keeps English hopes alive
The world number one took just an hour and 40 minutes to defeat Australian Aleksandar Vukic 6-1 6-1 6-3 and set up a meeting with Spain's Pedro Martinez on Saturday.
The only minor hiccup was needing six match points to finish off the world number 93.
Gallingly for his remaining rivals, Italian Sinner has dropped only 12 games in two matches, spending a miserly hours three and 28 minutes on court so far.
Alex de Minaur battled back from being a set down to make sure he did not join the seeds' scrapheap at this shock-filled Championships.
The Australian 11th seed was poor in the opening set against French qualifier Arthur Cazaux but reset impressively to win 4-6 6-2 6-4 6-0.
Grigor Dimitrov is also safely through, the 19th seed from Bulgaria taking out volatile Frenchman Corentin Moutet in four.
But American 13th seed Tommy Paul, last year's Queen's Club winner, joined the exodus of seeds with a 1-6 7-5 6-4 7-5 defeat by Austrian Sebastian Ofner.
Czech 21st seed Thomas Machac was also knocked out after a five-set marathon against August Holmgren, the world number 192 from Denmark who faced three match points in his second-round match in qualifying last week and is now through to a third-round meeting with De Minaur.
A total of 19 of the 32 men's seeds have been knocked out before the third round.
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There was controversy at the end of the day's play with American Ben Shelton furious after his match against Rinky Hijikata was suspended with the 10th seed just one hold of serve from victory.
Shelton had not dropped serve for the entire match, but it was called off at 9.29pm due to the fading light on Court Two, meaning the 22-year-old will have to come back on Friday and potentially play just four points.
Cameron Norrie kept the British hopes alive in the Wimbledon men's draw by brushing aside Italian world number 73 Mattia Bellucci to reach round four.
Jack Draper's surprise second-round loss on Thursday to former finalist Marin Cilic left Norrie as the last British man standing in SW19.
To the delight of the Court One crowd, the 2022 semi-finalist delivered, recovering from a slow start to win 7-6 (5) 6-4 6-3.
Norrie will take on either Brazilian teenage sensation Joao Fonseca or Chilean qualifier Nicolas Jarry next, with two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz a potential quarter-final opponent.
The 29-year-old has dipped below the radar since his exploits of three years ago, plummeting from a career-high ranking of eighth to 61st – via a spell at 91st – and slipping below Draper and Jacob Fearnley in the British pecking order.
He gave a reminder of his talents by sweeping past 12th seed Frances Tiafoe in round two and this – on paper, at least – looked to be a more straightforward assignment.
Yet Norrie was on the backfoot in the early stages against a fellow left-hander who scalped Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas early this year and came out all guns blazing.
Bellucci broke to love in the opening game and then fought back from 40-0 down to hold in game two, while his 16 first-set winners included an outrageous forehand around the side of the net off the Briton's serve.
Norrie eventually broke to love to level at 4-4 before a stunning backhand helped settle a tense tie-break in his favour.
Bellucci took a set off Draper in the first round of this year's French Open before fading.
Following his bright start, the 24-year-old looked set to suffer a similar fate after failing to hold at the start of the second set but he soon broke back from 40-0 down.
However, Norrie regained the initiative in game seven before sealing the set with an ace and then easing through the decider to progress in two hours and 28 minutes.

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