Guido Pella produced a magnificent fightback to claim the scalp of Marin Cilic, while Stan Wawrinka also bowed out in the second round and Alexander Zverev was trailing when play was suspended due to the light on Thursday.

Cilic was a runner-up at the All England Club last year, but the unheralded Pella came from two sets down to beat the third seed 3-6 1-6 6-4 7-6 (7-3) 7-5 on No.1 Court.

Like Pella, Wawrinka resumed his match against Thomas Fabbiano trailing by two sets after play was suspended on Wednesday due to rain.

The three-time grand slam champion was unable to dig himself out of a hole, though, going down 7-6 (9-7) 6-3 7-6 (8-6) to the Italian qualifier, while Taylor Fritz will return on Friday with a 4-6 7-5 7-6 (7-0) lead over fourth seed Zverev. 

Novak Djokovic took just an hour and 31 minutes to see off Horacio Zeballos 6-1 6-2 6-3 and is hopeful pain felt in his left knee is not serious after calling for a medical timeout in the third set.

World number one Rafael Nadal sauntered into round three, ousting Mikhail Kukushkin 6-4 6-3 6-4 on Centre Court.

 

PATIENCE PAYS OFF FOR PELLA 

Pella had never won a match at Wimbledon before this week, but will play fellow outsider Mackenzie McDonald in his first third-round match at a major after stunning Cilic.

Cilic, on a high after heading to SW19 on the back of a Queen's title, was in command before the rain came on Wednesday but was totally out of sorts as Pella raised his game to pull off the biggest shock in the men's draw.

"I was looking for this match for years, but I never expect to be here in Wimbledon against Cilic." said the 28-year-old from Argentina.

"That was the biggest surprise for me, because this is the third time I come here, the first time I win a single match in the main draw, and it was a big surprise."

WAWRINKA RUES MISSED OPPORTUNITIES

Wawrinka toppled Grigor Dimitrov in the first round, but came unstuck against the 133-ranked Fabbiano.

In another contest which could not be completed on day three due to the weather, Wawrinka saw three set points come and go in a first-set tie-break and another three in the third set to crash out as he continues his comeback from knee surgery.

The Swiss said: "Right now I'm really happy with my fitness level. My tennis game, I've been practicing really well the last few weeks. I've been pushing myself, pushing my body. I think my level is there.

"Now it's about getting back the confidence, winning some tough match, finding a way how to win those points like the set point yesterday. Those little things can change a tournament, but unfortunately he was playing well. He did the job to win in three sets."

 

CHIPS ARE DOWN FOR ZVEREV AGAINST FRITZ

Zverev produced some stirring fightbacks to reach his first grand slam quarter-final at the French Open and the German will need another when he resumes against unseeded American Fritz.

Fritz served 11 aces and struck 36 winners to take the upper hand on No.1 Court, blowing Zverev away in a third-set tie-break before play was suspended late on Thursday.

American Fritz has lost in the first round in his two previous appearances at Wimbledon and the 20-year-old has never reached the third round of a major.

Diego Schwartzman, the 14th seed, was beaten in straight sets by Jiri Vesely, but the likes of Juan Martin del Potro, Milos Raonic, Nick Kyrgios, Kevin Anderson and John Isner advanced.

 

DJOKOVIC INJURY 'NOTHING MAJOR', NADAL MARCHES ON

Djokovic made light work of getting past Zeballos, but the Serb underwent treatment on his left quad and hamstring after suffering an injury late in the match.

The 12-time major winner stated that the injury seemed to be "nothing major" after check-ups and expects to continue in the tournament, with a clash against home hope Kyle Edmund - the only Brit remaining in the men's or women's singles - to come in round three.

Nadal was given two time violation warnings - one for taking too long between the warm-up and his first serve of the match - by umpire Carlos Bernardes during a routine second-round win. He will face Australian teenager Alex De Minaur in the third round.