Lleyton Hewitt returned to his old stomping ground at Wimbledon's Centre Court on Thursday to score the biggest upset in the men's draw so far with a 6-3, 7-5, 7-5 win over fifth seed Juan Martin Del Potro.
Australian Hewitt, ranked 56 in the world after a series of injuries but champion here in 2002, never allowed the Argentine an inch of breathing space with superb ground coverage and made the most of his opponent's discomfort at the net.
"It's like a second home really," said Hewitt after his first career meeting with the 20-year-old. "It's great to be back in the third round."
Del Potro, a semi-finalist at Roland Garros last month, had his left knee taped up at the end of the first set after a nasty slip, and Hewitt, who won the opener in 45 minutes, rammed home his advantage.
Hewitt, roared on by a vocal section of Australian fans decked out in traditional green and yellow colours, won his only break point of the second set late on before taking it 7-5.
He served for the match at 5-4 but Del Potro levelled only for Hewitt to break again, roaring his trademark "Come on!" to the excitable crowd.
Hewitt made no mistake second time around when he sealed the victory on his second match point when Del Potro boomed a service return long.
He faces Philipp Petzschner or Mischa Zverev, both of Germany, in the third round.
Safina eases into round three
Top seed Dinara Safina blasted her way into the third round with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Paraguay's Rossana De Los Rios.
Safina, the world number one but still chasing her first Grand Slam crown, used a mix of powerful serving and superior groundstrokes to unseat the South American, ranked 99 places beneath her.
The Russian took the opener in 35 minutes courtesy of a single break and another break was all she needed to wrap up the match in an hour and 22 minutes, sealing victory with a crunching backhand crosscourt winner.
Safina will bid to reach the fourth round here for the first in her career against Belgium's Kirsten Flipkens.
Venus eclipses frustrated Bondarenko
Holder Venus Williams made hay while the sun shone on Court One on Thursday, crushing Ukraine's Kateryna Bondarenko 6-3 6-2 to book a place in the third round at Wimbledon.
Venus, her left leg strapped throughout, is seeking a sixth title here and her third in a row, and never gave the world number 73 the chance to fully express her game.
Two breaks helped the American edge a competitive first set in 37 minutes but the third seed was really finding the middle of her racket in an impressive second set and sealed victory in one hour and nine minutes with a clean forehand winner.
She will face Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain for a spot in the fourth round.
