Kyle Edmund shone in the scorching Melbourne Park sun as he came from behind to dramatically reach the fourth round of the Australian Open for the first time.
Edmund fought back from two sets to one down to dump out Nikoloz Basilashvili 7-6 (7-0) 3-6 4-6 6-0 7-5 over a three-and-a-half hour encounter in energy-sapping conditions.
After seizing the early initiative, the 23-year-old faded mid-match and looked to be slipping to defeat against the spirited Georgian.
But Beverley’s Edmund found an extra gear and powered through the fourth set to love to level the match, taking the decider to set up a last-16 clash with Italian Andreas Seppi.
Victory sees Edmund progress to the fourth round of a major for only the second time in his career, and he hailed the latest success in Australia as a massive boost in self-belief.
"For the physical test it was a great, great win for me to come through like that in a Grand Slam,” said the British number two.
"Best-of-five sets in that kind of heat, really good for my career and my confidence going forward."
With searing temperatures hovering around 40C, Edmund, ranked 49th, admitted the conditions were always going to be a test of his resilience and endurance in a match that saw him hit 70 winners and make 64 errors against the world number 61.
"It was hot. It's tough. There is no getting around it," added Edmund.
"Mentally, I just accepted it [was] going to be tough today. Physically you're probably going to be feeling not your best. That's just the way I approached it.
"It was tough out there. It zaps the energy out of you." Edmund will take on Seppi on Sunday after the world number 71 dumped out big-serving Croatian Ivo Karlovic in a thrilling five-set marathon 6-3 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (3-7) 6-7 (5-7) 9-7.
Sportsbeat 2018