HENRY Patten and men’s doubles partner Harri Heliövaara stunned fifth seeds Andrea Vavassori and Simone Bolelli to cruise into the second round at Wimbledon.
The Manningtree ace, 28, took to the hallowed SW19 turf on Wednesday lunchtime and completed an impressive 6-3 6-4 triumph over the higher-ranked Italian duo.
Patten, the current men’s doubles world No.43, is competing at his home Grand Slam for just the second time after losing in the first round back in 2022.
And he hit it off with flying Finn Heliövaara in rapid time to book a last 32 date with Spaniards Pedro Martinez and Jaume Munar on Friday.
Patten and experienced Heliövaara, 35, secured the crucial break in the first set to seize the advantage with a 6-3 triumph.
And they continued their momentum in the second to keep their Wimbledon dream alive in front of a supportive Court 6 crowd.
Patten grabbed his maiden ATP title at the Grand Prix Hassan II in Marrakech earlier this year before reaching the third round of the men’s doubles at the French Open.
That followed a promising set of results that also saw him reach the second round of the Australian Open in January and the second at the US Open back in September.
He’s now at the same stage at the most prestigious Grand Slam of them all and will hope to match his best ever run to the last 16 when he returns to the court ahead of the weekend.
For the latest action on the British summer grass court season, check out the LTA website
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