Carlos Alcaraz survived a brutal encounter with close friend Frances Tiafoe at Wimbledon on Friday to keep his title defence on track with a 5-7, 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 7/2, 6-2 win.
The Spanish third seed was out-hit and out-fought for large periods of the match on Centre Court by his US opponent but found an extra gear when he needed to in a match lasting nearly four hours.
Alcaraz, bidding to become only the sixth man to win the French Open and Wimbledon back-to-back, beat Novak Djokovic in a thrilling final last year.
He will face America's Brandon Nakashima or 16th seed Ugo Humbert of France in the fourth round as he seeks a fourth Grand Slam title at the tender age of 21.
Tiafoe, seeded 29th, put Alcaraz's serve under intense pressure in the opening set, carving out six break points and taking two of them to win it 7-5.
